‘Inappropriate behavior’ shuts down NYC-to-Ireland public video link

Less than a week after the debut of two public sculptures featuring a livestream between Dublin, Ireland, and New York City, “inappropriate behavior” in people’s interactions has prompted a temporary shutdown.

“The Portals” are lens-like installations with a 24/7 video link to allow people in the two cities to interact with each other. The link does not include audio.

Social media videos have shown people flashing body parts to viewers on the other side.

The creators of the sculptures are now “investigating possible technical solutions to inappropriate behaviour by a small minority of people in front of the Portal,” according to a statement from the Dublin City Council.

“Dublin City Council had hoped to have a solution in place today, but unfortunately the preferred solution, which would have involved blurring, was not satisfactory,” the City Council said late Tuesday. The team behind the sculptures, Portals.org, is looking at other options.

The City Council said that Portals.org expected to be able to turn the link on again later this week.

“We are delighted by how many people have been enjoying the Portal since it was launched last week,” the statement said. “It has become a global phenomenon and it is important to note that the overwhelming majority of people interacting with the Dublin Portal have behaved appropriately.”

Organizers in New York also underlined that the inappropriate behavior has come from “a very small minority” of visitors.

“In New York, we have had a set of protocols in place since the Portal’s launch, including 24/7 on-site security and barriers to prevent people from stepping onto the Portal,” said a statement from Flatiron NoMad Partnership, one of the project’s organizers in New York.

On the Dublin side, the portal faces the capital city’s main street, O’Connell Street. In New York, the portal sculpture is on the Flatiron South Public Plaza, next to Madison Square Park at Fifth Avenue and 23rd Street.

The Portals are the brainchild of Lithuanian artist Benediktas Gylys.

The first Portals, according to the organization’s website, linked Vilnius, Lithuania, and Lublin, Poland, in 2021.

In July, Dublin expects to connect to locations in Poland, Brazil and Lithuania, according to Daithi de Róiste, the lord mayor.