Portals is a global public art initiative that connects people around the globe through real-time video audiovisual technology housed inside a gold-painted, converted shipping container or other structure.{{cite news, url=http://www.cnn.com/2017/04/21/arts/portals-project-los-angeles/, title=This gold box is 'better than Facebook', date=April 23, 2017, work=CNN, agency=CNN, author=Jason Kravarik , author2=Stephanie Elam, accessdate=24 May 2017{{cite news, last1=Stephanopolous, first1=George, title=This Week with George Stephanopoulos: Reporting on the Global Public Art Initiative, Portals, url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f70eYYjkMsk, agency=ABC This Week, date=30 May 2016 Individuals and groups enter local Portals and engage with individuals or groups in distant Portals through live, full-body video conferencing. The experience has been described as "breathing the same air." Portals are placed in public spaces such as public squares, museums, university campuses, high-level summits, and refugee camps. Participation is free, and the spaces are maintained by staff called Portal_Curators.{{cite news, last1=Wallace, first1=Chris, title=FOX News Sunday: Creating global community center one conversation at a time, url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vALN6CP3MvU&index=8&list=PL2gmm9arlT_QUJgnOTSY9jU_n-b8RDLzb, agency=FOX News Sunday, date=26 May 2016

History

The project was started in 2014 by artist Amar Bakshi, and initially connected the cities of New York and Tehran. According to Bakshi, he started the project "to connect people who wouldn't otherwise meet.” He had the idea to start the project after his days as a foreign journalist, where he launched

How the World Sees America ''How the World Sees America'' is a video blog run by global correspondent Amar C. Bakshi and sponsored by ''The Washington Post'' and Newsweek Magazine. It features daily articles, which include text and short video clips, about citizens around ...

for

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...

. After returning from his time reporting, he realized he missed the conversations he had had with strangers he met around the world. Bakshi, along with his art collective Shared Studios, has operated the project in nearly 50 cities around the world. Notable project participants have included U.S. president Barack Obama, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, and Google founder Sergey Brin. Artist Amar Bakshi built the first Portal in 2014. He launched Portals in collaboration with fellow journalist Michelle Moghtader and Iranian artist Sohrab Kashani. Bakshi began construction of the first Portal in his parents’ backyard in Washington, D.C.{{Citation, first=Bahman , last=Kalbasi, title=اتاق اینترنتی: تهران-نیویورک, date=2014-12-27, url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uvRIw5fQZos, accessdate=2018-06-07 The first project connected participants in Lu Magnus art gallery in New York City, USA and Sazmanab Center for Contemporary Art in Tehran, Iran, and was in place for two weeks.{{cite news, url=http://tmagazine.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/12/03/amar-bakshi-portals-tehran-art-project/?_r=0, title=A New Exhibition Offers a Virtual Link to Tehran, last1=Murphy, first1=Tim, date=December 3, 2014, work=T Magazine, accessdate=24 May 2017, agency=New York Times{{cite news, url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c4o5Y8j4HK4, title=CNN Last Look: A Portal between Iran & U S, last1=Zakaria, first1=Fareed, date=5 March 2015, agency=CNN Computer science professor Omid Habibi then became interested in the project and decided to create a Portal at Hariwa University in Herat, Afghanistan, which then launched in March 2015. The project has since expanded to over 40 cities around the world.

Structure

The videoconferencing has been done through different platforms, including Zoom. According to Bakshi, he originally had wanted to strip the shipping containers of paint, buff them, and repaint them, but this process proved to be too expensive and bad for the environment. The decision to paint the shipping containers gold emerged through trial and error. He previously experimented with painting the container black, white, and silver, but he decided on the color gold because he felt it conveyed “sacredness.” In some locations the video conferencing equipment is housed inside an existing building rather than a shipping container. In other locations the project operates inside a gold, inflatable portal. Participation in the project is free, and those who wish to participate can often make appointments prior to arrival. The sessions typically last 20 minutes, and participants are asked an open-ended questions such as “What would make today a good day for you?” to get the conversation going. Interactions are sometimes aided by text translations or in-person translators.

Notable Portal locations

Portals have been placed at the following locations: {{col-begin {{col-2 * Amman, Jordan, a
Fablab
* Aspen, USA at the 2016

Aspen Ideas Festival Founded in 2005, the Aspen Ideas Festival (AIF) is a week-long event held in Aspen, Colorado in the United States. The Aspen Ideas Festival program of events includes discussions, seminars, panels, and tutorials from journalists, designers, innova ...

* Austin, Texas at

St. Edward's University St. Edward's University is a private, Catholic university in Austin, Texas. It was founded and is operated in the Holy Cross tradition. History Founding and early history St. Edward's University was founded by the Reverend Edward Sorin, CSC ...

and 2017

SXSW South by Southwest, abbreviated as SXSW and colloquially referred to as South By, is an annual conglomeration of parallel film, interactive media, and music festivals and conferences organized jointly that take place in mid-March in Austin, Te ...

{{Cite web, url=http://skoll.org/skoll-world-forum/2017-skoll-world-forum-fault-lines-creating-common-ground/, title=Skoll {{! 2017 Skoll World Forum: Overview, website=skoll.org, access-date=2017-05-30 * Baltimore, USA at

Lexington Market Lexington Market is a historic market in Downtown Baltimore, Maryland. The market is now housed in a 60,000-square-foot market shed building completed in 2022 that is home to 50 merchants and kiosks. The market has occupied many market buildings ...

{{Cite web, url=http://www.baltimoremagazine.com/2017/2/14/baltimore-portal-aims-to-connect-locals-with-strangers-around-the-world, title=Baltimore Portal Aims to Connect Locals with…, date=2017-02-14, website=Baltimore magazine, language=en, access-date=2017-05-26{{Cite news, url=http://www.abc2news.com/news/region/baltimore-city/portal-that-connects-people-around-the-world-unveiled-at-lexington-market, title=Portal that connects people around the world unveiled at Lexington Market, author=WMAR Staff, date=2017-02-14, work=WMAR, access-date=2017-05-26, language=en-US{{cite news, url=http://www.sharedstudios.com/press-list/2017/2/15/portal-that-connects-people-around-the-world-unveiled-at-lexington-market, title=ABC: Portal that connects people around the world unveiled at Lexington Market, work=Shared_Studios * Berlin, Germany at

Tempelhof Airport Berlin Tempelhof Airport (german: Flughafen Berlin-Tempelhof) was one of the first airports in Berlin, Germany. Situated in the south-central Berlin borough of Tempelhof-Schöneberg, the airport ceased operating in 2008 amid controversy, leav ...

* Boulder, Colorado at

University of Colorado Boulder The University of Colorado Boulder (CU Boulder, CU, or Colorado) is a public research university in Boulder, Colorado. Founded in 1876, five months before Colorado became a state, it is the flagship university of the University of Colorado syst ...

* Brooklyn, USA at the New Lab * Chicago, USA at Chicago Ideas Week 2016 * College Park, USA at the

University of Maryland The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland. Founded in 1856, UMD is the flagship institution of the University System of M ...

* El Progreso, Honduras with Organization for Youth Empowerment{{Cite news, url=https://www.timeout.com/san-francisco/blog/enter-a-portal-to-iran-or-honduras-or-cuba-in-this-hayes-valley-art-experience-092315, title=Enter a Portal to Iran (or Honduras, or Cuba) in This Hayes Valley Art Experience, work=Time Out San Francisco, access-date=2017-05-26, language=en * Erbil, Iraq at the Harsham IDP Camp with UNICEF{{Cite news, url=https://blogs.unicef.org/blog/virtual-obama-meets-a-teen-iraqi-entrepreneur/, title=Virtual Obama meets a young Iraqi entrepreneur - UNICEF Connect, date=2016-07-14, work=UNICEF Connect, access-date=2017-05-26, language=en-US{{Cite news, url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/an-american-in-dc-a-refugee-in-iraq-and-a-powerful-exhibit-that-let-them-talk-face-to-face/2017/02/28/ede1c536-f9d9-11e6-be05-1a3817ac21a5_story.html, title=An American in D.C. A refugee in Iraq. And a powerful exhibit that let them talk face-to-face., last=Gibson, first=Caitlin, date=2017-02-28, work=The Washington Post, access-date=2017-05-26, last2=Gibson, first2=Caitlin, language=en-US, issn=0190-8286 * Gaza City, Palestine at

Gaza Sky Geeks Gaza Sky Geeks (GSG), previously known as the Arab Developer Network Initiative, is the first and only tech hub and startup accelerator in Gaza in Palestine. It was founded in 2011 with the backing of the global humanitarian organization Mercy ...

{{Cite news, url=http://www.chicagotribune.com/bluesky/originals/ct-chicago-ideas-week-portals-daley-plaza-bsi-20161013-story.html, title=A portal in Daley Plaza can take you to Rwanda during Chicago Ideas Week, last=Jackson, first=Cheryl V., work=chicagotribune.com, access-date=2017-05-26, language=en-US * Greenwich, USA at

Greenwich Academy , motto_translation = Toward the Building of Character , gender = Girls , head_name = Head , head = Molly H. King , streetaddress = 200 North Maple Ave , city = Greenwich , county = Fairfield County , state = Connecticut , country = U ...

* Havana, Cuba with Vistar Magazine * Herat, Afghanistan at Hariwa University * Isfahan, Iran * Kigali, Rwanda at Impact Hub Kigali with Kurema Kureba Kwiga{{Cite web, url=http://news.stanford.edu/thedish/2016/05/06/portals-project-makes-connections-around-the-world/, title=Portals Project makes connections around the world, website=news.stanford.edu, language=en, access-date=2017-05-26 * Los Angeles, USA at

Grand Park Grand Park is a park located in the civic center of Los Angeles, California. First developed in 1966 as the 'Civic Center Mall' with plazas, fountains and a Court of Flags, it is now a part of the larger redevelopment known as the Grand Avenue ...

* London, UK at Campus London{{Cite news, url=https://www.virgin.com/virgin-unite/how-containerships-are-connecting-global-start-scene, title=How containerships are connecting the global start-up scene, first=C, last=Kelly, date=2016-06-29, work=Virgin, access-date=2017-05-30, language=en {{col-2 * Mission, USA with Mission Economic Development District * Mexico City, Mexico at Museo Tamayo and Center for Digital Culture * Mumbai, India at the 2017 Mumbai Marathon * Newark, USA at Military Park * New York City, USA at the

United Nations Headquarters The United Nations is headquartered in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, United States, and the complex has served as the official headquarters of the United Nations since its completion in 1951. It is in the Turtle Bay, Manhattan, Turtle Bay neig ...

UNGA The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA or GA; french: link=no, Assemblée générale, AG) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN), serving as the main deliberative, policymaking, and representative organ of the UN. Cur ...

2015 and UNGA 2016, Lu Magnus Gallery and Danese/Corey Gallery * Oxford, UK at 2017 Skoll World Forum * Park City, USA at the 2015

Sundance Film Festival The Sundance Film Festival (formerly Utah/US Film Festival, then US Film and Video Festival) is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with more than 46,66 ...

with

Airbnb Airbnb, Inc. ( ), based in San Francisco, California, operates an online marketplace focused on short-term homestays and experiences. The company acts as a broker and charges a commission from each booking. The company was founded in 2008 b ...

* Palo Alto, USA at

Stanford University Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is consider ...

and the 2016 Global Entrepreneurship Summit with

Google Google LLC () is an American multinational technology company focusing on search engine technology, online advertising, cloud computing, computer software, quantum computing, e-commerce, artificial intelligence, and consumer electronics. ...

for Entrepreneurs * Rye, USA at Rye Arts Center * San Francisco, USA at ProxySF * Seoul, South Korea at Campus Seoul * Tehran, Iran at the Sazmanab Center for Contemporary Art{{cite news, url=https://vancouversun.com/news/local-news/ted-talks-opens-portals-for-attendees-to-make-connections-across-globe, title=TED Talks opens portals for attendees to make connections across globe, date=28 April 2017, work=Vancouver Sun * Washington, DC at the

U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum (USHMM) is the United States' official memorial to the Holocaust. Adjacent to the National Mall in Washington, D.C., the USHMM provides for the documentation, study, and interpretation of Holocaust hist ...

, the

U.S. Capitol The United States Capitol, often called The Capitol or the Capitol Building, is the Seat of government, seat of the Legislature, legislative branch of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government, which is form ...

, the Woodrow Wilson Plaza, and

Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private university, private research university in the Georgetown (Washington, D.C.), Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789 as Georg ...

* Yangon, Myanmar * Za'atari, Jordan * Davos, Switzerland (for the World Economic Forum) {{col-end

Notable guests

Portal participants include: *

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the U ...

Ban Ki-moon Ban Ki-moon (; ; born 13 June 1944) is a South Korean politician and diplomat who served as the eighth secretary-general of the United Nations between 2007 and 2016. Prior to his appointment as secretary-general, Ban was his country's Minister ...

{{cite news, url=http://www.newsweek.com/digital-portal-lets-un-visitors-step-inside-zaatari-refugee-camp-375818, title=Coming Face-to-Face With Zaatari Residents at the U.N., date=23 September 2015, work=Newsweek, language=en *

Haider Al-Abadi Haider Jawad Kadhim al-Abadi ( ar, حيدر جواد كاظم العبادي; born 25 April 1952) is an Iraqi politician who was Prime Minister of Iraq from September 2014 until October 2018. Previously he served as Minister of Communication fro ...

Samantha Power Samantha Jane Power (born September 21, 1970) is an American journalist, diplomat and government official who is currently serving as the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development. She previously served as the 28th ...

{{Cite news, url=http://www.newsweek.com/digital-portal-lets-un-visitors-step-inside-zaatari-refugee-camp-375818, title=Coming Face-to-Face With Zaatari Residents at the U.N., date=2015-09-23, work=Newsweek, access-date=2017-05-30, language=en *

Ewan McGregor Ewan Gordon McGregor ( ; born 31 March 1971) is a Scottish actor. His accolades include a Golden Globe Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, and the BAFTA Britannia Humanitarian Award. In 2013, he was appointed Officer of the Order of the British ...

Fareed Zakaria Fareed Rafiq Zakaria (; born 20 January 1964) is an Indian-American journalist, political commentator, and author. He is the host of CNN's ''Fareed Zakaria GPS'' and writes a weekly paid column for ''The Washington Post.'' He has been a columnist ...

Doug Liman Douglas Eric Liman (; born July 24, 1965) is an American film director and producer. He is known for directing the films '' Swingers'' (1996), '' Go'' (1999), '' The Bourne Identity'' (2002), '' Mr. & Mrs. Smith'' (2005), ''Jumper'' (2008), ''Edg ...

Morgan Spurlock Morgan Valentine Spurlock (born November 7, 1970) is an American documentary filmmaker, humorist, television producer, screenwriter and playwright. Spurlock's films include ''Super Size Me'' (2004), '' Where in the World Is Osama bin Laden?'' (20 ...

Amy Chua Amy Lynn Chua (born October 26, 1962), also known as "the Tiger Mom", is an American lawyer, legal scholar, and writer. She is the John M. Duff Jr. Professor of Law at Yale Law School with an expertise in international business transactions, law ...

{{Cite web, url=https://law.yale.edu/yls-today/news/yale-law-student-launches-art-exhibit-linking-nyc-tehran, title=Yale Law Student Launches Art Exhibit Linking NYC to Tehran - Yale Law School, website=law.yale.edu, language=en, access-date=2017-05-30 * Robert Post *

Vint Cerf Vinton Gray Cerf (; born June 23, 1943) is an American Internet pioneer and is recognized as one of " the fathers of the Internet", sharing this title with TCP/IP co-developer Bob Kahn. He has received honorary degrees and awards that include t ...

* Tom Friedman *

{{Cite news, url=https://qz.com/506201/the-un-is-using-virtual-reality-and-an-immersive-wormhole-to-connect-diplomats-with-syrian-refugees/, title=The UN is using virtual reality and an immersive "wormhole" to connect diplomats with Syrian refugees, last=Kozlowska, first=Hanna, work=Quartz, access-date=2018-07-01, language=en-US

References

{{reflist

External links

Official website
2014 in art Public art Visual arts