The art installation Portals brings the world to LOVE Park starting Tuesday

This big, big world is about to get a lot smaller and friendlier, and you don't have to go any further than LOVE Park to take part in the experience.

On Tuesday at 10 a.m., the Portals sculpture, recently installed in Philadelphia's famous park, will be commissioned, connecting the City of Brotherly Love via real-time video with cities in three European countries – Dublin (Ireland), Vilnius in Lithuania and Lublin (Poland).

“We hope that a portal will find a permanent home in the birthplace of America,” said Benediktas Gylys, the Lithuanian artist who launched the Portals project several years ago.

Gylys said he considers it “an honor” to have his sculpture in Philadelphia, “just yards from the site where the American Declaration of Independence was signed nearly 250 years ago.” I hope the local community will appreciate the portal sculpture accepted as part of the city.”

Once it's on, the connection between Philadelphia and the other three cities will change, rotating approximately every three minutes, “inviting everyone to meet and share humanity with people from different countries and cultures – people we otherwise wouldn't “We may never encounter our lives here on planet Earth,” said the Creator.

Since the first portals connecting Vilnius and Lublin were installed in 2021, project leaders estimate hundreds of millions of people have taken part in the experience. Portals connecting Dublin and New York City have been added. The portal, which was located in New York City until early last month, has now moved to Philly.

Since the large, ball-like structure recently appeared, there has certainly been a lot of buzz on social media and among passersby. This also includes enthusiasm for The Crack. There is a crack in the lower, middle part of the portal's large screen.

In answer to the question every Philly person wanted to know: No, we didn't do that.

According to a spokesman for Portals, the crack apparently occurred during transport here from New York.

Grover Washington III, a Portals.org contractor responsible for the installation, said the portal will work fine as is, but a new piece of glass has been ordered and will be installed within a week.

“With this glass, it works perfectly,” Washington said.

Of course, he's talking to the people who have loved the Liberty Bell – crack and all – for hundreds of years. People at LOVE Park on Monday seemed excited that the portal was here.

“It's so cool! So cool!” said Norma Jones, 60, a city worker from Philadelphia who stopped by the park to check on the progress of the installation. “I think it's great. It is necessary. Since Philadelphia is a tourist city, this will be a big attraction.”

For the Sharp family of Buffalo, the portal was just another unexpected treat on their trip to Philadelphia to celebrate their daughter Marissa's 10th birthday. They visited the Reading Terminal Market and the Rocky Steps. Eastern State Penitentiary, ate cheesesteaks. That night they went to Monday Night Raw and Marissa was hoping to meet her hero, professional wrestler Seth Rollins.

Her father, Jeremy Sharp, 46, thought the idea of ​​the portal was a nice thing.

“That’s a great idea,” he said. “Familiarity brings with it a feeling of connection, right? We tend to fear things we don't understand. So anything that gives people a better understanding of others and different cultures is always good as long as we show the best side of ourselves, right?”

To be honest, some people were hoping Philly would behave. The portal between New York and Dublin was temporarily interrupted after some people behaved offensively.

“I heard someone flashed it and they cut off the feed,” said Erin May, 19, of Malvern, who was at LOVE Park on Monday with some fellow University of Notre Dame students.

Her friend Grace Slear, 19, of Maryland, said she saw no nasty behavior while studying abroad in Dublin and signed up for the portal. On the contrary.

“If you look at it logically, it's much worse for actual connection than FaceTime,” she said, since there's no sound. “But it’s so cool to have this building in the middle of the city and see each other through this public lens. That’s what makes it so much more unique and unique – looking at your friend through the portal instead of looking at their phone or something.”

Over time, even more people will be able to connect.

Gylys said another portal is in the works in the Brazilian state of Piaui and another is planned somewhere in Asia.

“It is a long and difficult process, but I feel grateful and blessed to be able to dedicate my life to building this bridge to a unified planet,” he said. “For us, it’s not just about building portals. It’s about spreading the message of positivity, unity and light.”