A touchingly brave four-story mural of two men embracing was recently plastered on the side of a Dublin building on George Street. The black and white image is meant to be a “poignant representation of same sex love,” according to its painter, Joe Caslin. His image is a homage to marriage equality, an issue soon to be taken up in a May 22 referendum.
The mural is said to be inspired by Frederic William Burton’s “The Meeting on the Turret Stairs” which was voted Ireland’s favorite painting in a 2012 poll. Caslin’s image is similarly taking Dubliners’ hearts by storm with hundreds of selfies posted across the social media spectrum, support from celebrities and politicians, and with write-ups in The Irish Times and Buzzfeed. The mural has been so successful that Caslin is considering installing a second image of two women embracing, but a location has yet to be chosen. ♦
UPDATE: Since the mural was painted and this story ran in the June / July 2015 issue of Irish America, the mural has washed away in the rain. After a successful petition through Change.org to raise money to make the mural a permanent installation on George Street, the organizers released this statement:
After all the hard work of you lot, I’m afraid to say it’s been for nothing. Apparently, the mural was a little less sturdy than we originally thought. Due to heavy rain earlier today, half of the mural has been washed away. Don’t for a second let this deter you or feel like this was a wasted venture. This petition showed me 1 very important thing, The citizens of this country, and indeed this world, are some amazing people, who are not willing to sit down and take inequality of people as if it’s something deserved. You have all been incredible, I’m incredibly proud of where this has lead to, almost 45,000 signatures in a week! I’m sad to see this piece of art go, but there will be more! Thank you so much for joining me on this venture, I never would have expected an outpouring like this. I’d also like to take this opportunity to thank the many Cllrs, TD’s and Journalists for their support in this campaign.
Leave a Reply