A replica of the "Repeal the 8th", which was controversially removed recently from Temple Bar, has appeared at Blackhall Place Dublin on Wednesday morning.
The Irish Council for Civil Liberties (ICCL) has created two replicas of the heart-shaped image that was designed by Irish street artist Maser on the front ground floor windows of its building.
The original mural, which refers to the campaign to repeal the Eighth Amendment of the Constitution, on the front of Project Arts Centre was removed due to complaints and a planning violation on July 25th.
Mark Kelly, executive director of the ICCL, said the artwork should be seen by those it was intended to reach.
“States have an obligation to respect, protect and fulfil the right to freedom of artistic expression and creativity,” he said.
He said the replicas were “temporary signs” that did not require planning permission.
"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."
Mr Kelly said 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 Project Arts Centre made the decision to paint over the mural after it received a warning notice from Dublin City Council Planning Department that the work is in violation of the Planning and Development Acts (2000-2015).
The original artwork was funded by The Hunreal Issues, a website aiming to politically mobilise women in Ireland.
HunReal’s founder told Newtalk 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 the 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 stigmatised women’s healthcare decisions become.”
