Philadelphians suspect new Love Park art installation is viral 'portal'

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- A bright, shiny structure new to Love Park has been making Philadelphia residents stop and stare.

It's garnered mixed reactions from those just passing by.

"It's kind of like art. It's kind of thought-provoking," commented Stan Karkowski from St. Paul, Minnesota."I'm from Minnesota, so it kind of looks like a hockey puck with a hole in it."

"It reminds me of the scary movie 'The Ring.' Like the girl is going to climb out of it or something like that," added Brett Sommerer from Northeast Philadelphia.

Some say they have an idea of what this new piece of art may be.

"I just saw this portal. I think it was online, and there were a bunch of people in Times Square in New York, and I think they were seeing on the other side was Dublin," said Claudia from Center City. "It looked like fun."

"We're thinking it's going to be turning on anytime soon," said Damaris Ayala from Milwaukee, Wisconsin. "I want to be part of it."

The back of the installation shows a link to portals.org.

The "portals" are technology-based art sculptures in public spaces that connect to other sculptures internationally providing a real-time, unfiltered livestream24/7.

"It's a global world, so it's really neat to connect with people all over the world," said Karwoski.

"I think that's pretty cool," said Sommerer. "What's the worst that can happen? It's not like they can come out of the screen and catch ya."

The project was created by a Lithuanian artist back in 2021 to meet people beyond borders and unite the world.

"It's important, especially in this day and age," said Ayala. "We need to make sure we humanize each other. We know that we have so many things in common. We're good people."

Previous spots include Vilnius, Lithuania; Lublin, Poland; New York City, New York; and Dublin, Ireland.

The website shows the newest locations are in Piaui, Brazil, and one that is "announcing soon." Many believe it will soon reveal the City of Brotherly Love.

"I just came back from Brazil, and I would love to be able to say hello to them again. If that is the case, I'll be coming back today and tomorrow to see if they turn it on," said Ayala.

"I'm just curious what is the other city. I think I will come back tomorrow and take a look," said Claudia.

Action News is waiting to hear back from city leaders regarding when the portal will go live.