A replica of the 'Repeal the 8th' mural, that was removed recently from Temple Bar, will be put up today at Blackhall Place in Dublin.
The Irish Council for Civil Liberties (ICCL) is creating two exact replicas of the mural at its Dublin offices after the original artwork was painted over due to complaints.
Mark Kelly, executive director of the ICCL said that the state has an obligation to "respect, protect and fulfil" the right to freedom of artistic expression and creativity and he believes the artwork should be seen by those it is intended to reach.
"While the Irish Council for Civil Liberties fully respects the planning processes of Dublin City Council, it believes that Maser’s compelling work deserves to reach a wider audience pending its restoration to the wall of the Project Arts Centre."
He said that since the mural was removed the art has been appearing on t-shirts, caps, donuts all around the city and has become a symbol for the pro-choice movement.
The original piece was displayed on the side of the Project Arts Centre in Temple Bar - but was removed following complaints that they did not have planning permission for the artwork.
The replica being unveiled today at the ICCL’s headquarters are “temporary signs” that do not require planning permission.
Sarah Pierce, chair of the board of Project Arts Centre, explained why the first mural was removed.
"We have taken the decision to remove the mural artwork by celebrated street artist, Maser, painted on the front of our building, after receiving a warning notice from Dublin City Council Planning Department that the work is in violation of the Planning & Development Acts," she said.
.@HunRealIssues Really looking forward to wearing in the Dáil. Censorship makes us stronger #repealthe8th pic.twitter.com/eUwWlckjwr
— Clare Daly TD (@ClareDalyTD) July 28, 2016
The mural was created by Irish graffiti artist, Maser, for 'HunReal Issues' in order to draw attention to the Repeal the 8th campaign.
HunReal's founder told Newstalk that the project was created to spread the message about repealing the 8th and other political issues to a wider audience.
"The whole goal of The HunReal Issues is to add more voices who aren’t traditionally into politics and current affairs into the conversation and having something on the street, slap bang in the middle of Temple Bar seemed like the perfect way to do that."
Their aim is that this mural will open up a public forum about the campaign and allow people to feel more comfortable with sharing their views.
“The more we talk about it, explore what repealing it actually means and what comes afterwards - how many people it has affected, and continues to affect - the less stigmatized women’s healthcare decisions become.”
