The Portal, founded by Lithuanian investor and artist, Benediktas Gylys and revealed to the public on May 8, closed shortly afterward due to inappropriate behavior.
The 24/7 livestream interface allowed residents of New York City and Dublin, Ireland to interact with each other through a live camera preview of both cities.
Gylys described it as a demonstration of the interconnectedness that unites people across the globe by connecting the physical and virtual worlds.
The art installation was located in the Flatiron South Public Plaza at 23rd street, where some individuals took it as an opportunity to engage in disruptive behavior.
Ava Louise, a 26-year-old OnlyFans model, prompted the closure after flashing her breasts to pedestrians in Dublin.
Louise posted on Instagram on May 12, saying that she had “just gotten the portal shut down” and commented, “I thought the people of Dublin deserved to see my two New York homegrown potatoes.”
Following the incident, the portal’s 8-by-8-foot video screen displayed a blue static screen, which eventually turned off the live feed.
Dublin residents were also reportedly involved in inappropriate behavior, including flashing swastikas, mooning the camera and displaying a photo of the 9/11 attacks on the Twin Towers.
The temporary installation, presented by the Flatiron NoMad Partnership, aimed to form a bridge between Dublin and New York, showing that “We are more connected than what separates us.”
However, the actions of residents in both cities contradicted Gylys’ artistic vision of global interconnectedness.
The installation’s organizers have since developed a solution to combat inappropriate behavior, including a proximity sensor that blurs the livestream if people step onto the sculpture or block the camera.
Many interactions were wholesome, including marriage proposals and reunions with long-time friends.
Although the installation’s popularity has prompted some mayhem, its goal remains to integrate different parts of the world as it moves through cities and countries, including Philadelphia and Brazil.
Gylys said the project is “an invitation to rise above prejudices and disagreements that belong to the past.”
The steel and cement portal attracted and engaged 500 million pedestrians within the first five days of opening and continues to be a temporary exhibition, moving to new locations.
Gylys told The Guardian, “I can’t control behavior, and I don’t want to, but it’s my dream to expand the portal network.”
Portals.org has partnered with Sen, a space media company that provides high-quality video streams from space.
This collaboration will offer live views from space in locations such as Dublin, Ireland, Lublin, Poland, Gylys’s home city of Vilnius, Lithuania and future locations.
Starting on Sept. 3, Portals will function as a “window” showing recorded footage of Earth from space.
“We look forward to seeing how visitors to the Portal react to this unique perspective of the world!” Jamie Cudden, Smart City Lead at Dublin City Council said.
The Portal continues its mission of global connectivity by offering a livestream of Earth from Space, using Sen’s ETV-A1 satellite, which will serve as a precursor to a network of satellites set to be installed in space in the coming years.
