I’m confused by the Dublin New York portal and I really hope I’m not the only one. It sort of feels like something that should have been released in 2007. Something destined for prime during the late noughties, just as Skype was captivating our attention. Bringing loved ones who lived far apart closer together and allowed us to webcam our friends on MSN after school. I could stretch even to the very early aftermath of Covid. A lack of human connection drove us all crazy and so maybe a giant video camera showing strangers going about their business on the edge of another city across the world would have appealed a little more at that time. Something that could have actually felt newsworthy to me. Something special. Something momentous in bringing different groups of people together. But it’s all a bit Marble Arch Mound, isn’t it?
And obviously, people can’t be trusted. It took all but a week for the portal to be switched all because of inappropriate behaviour. Surprised it wasn’t sooner if anything. An OnlyFans model got her boobs out next to the Flatiron building and flashed them for Dublin, whilst in Dublin a woman was taken away by The Garda for rubbing herself up against its exterior. Let’s not also forget the swastikas, taunts of 9/11 and messages of expletives written on people’s phones held right up to the screen. Ah, the general public.
But don’t worry! The portal has since reopened, phew. With some tweaks and changes, everyone is now sure good behaviour shall be encouraged. Oh and there’s a new curfew as well, it’s lights out by 9pm for Dublin meaning connection for New York drops at 4pm, at which point New Yorkers will benefit from a blank screen and the blissful silence. Scratch that, there was never any sound to begin with. How long do we think the portal can really last before people just get bored?
I don’t want to shit all over it entirely. Like many other forms of installation, and also conceptual, art the bigger picture, or the reasons behind the creation, can often provide us with deeper meaning. The first portal is merely the beginning for artist Benediktas Gylys whose dream is to connect people and communities all over the world. A premise I am completely on board with. We are more disconnected than ever, we don’t know our neighbours and we struggle to strike up conversation with strangers standing in line at a coffee shop. If there’s a correlation between our disconnectedness and ever-evolving technology, or the need to be chronically online, then maybe giant webcams and old-school tech (tech years are basically like dog years) could be the answer after all.
Maybe everything I’ve been telling myself about “the myth of mundanity content” is a lie and there’s really no myth at all. Maybe raw mundanity is the way forward. The turn towards disregarding overly curated day-in-the-life content? Unlikely.
I thought about writing a short story. A romance. Two people who lost touch after college, a drifting apart that turned into a decade or two passing them by. Him in New York on his morning commute. Running late which is unusual for him. Her in Dublin out during her lunch break grabbing something like a Pret baguette. Predictable and a bit basic but she’s a sucker for routine and knows what she likes - Posh Cheddar & Pickle. It’s what he always liked most about her. It’s been years since they last spoke. Can either of them even remember the exact last time they saw one another? But that morning, in early May 2024, they lock eyes in the Dublin New York portal.
I mean, could you actually imagine.