'Dublin D' sculpture on Grafton Street slammed as 'glorified billboard'

Local councillors have criticised Dublin City Council over the sudden installation of the new 'Dublin D' sculpture on Grafton Street, questioning its approval process and whether it constitutes advertising rather than legitimate public art

Add to preferred sources News Stephen Holland Local Democracy Reporter 17:50, 13 Oct 2026 View Image The Dublin D (Image: Fennell Photography )

The appearance of the Dublin D sculpture on Grafton Street has received significant pushback from local councillors.

Last week, Dublin City Council unveiled a contemporary sculpture that they said “brings the Dublin Brand to life”. Described as a visual landmark celebrating everything that makes the capital dynamic, councillors at the South East Area Committee questioned why they were not informed about the installation and whether it followed the proper implementation procedure.

Green Party Councillor Carolyn Moore tabled an emergency motion calling for a detailed report on its installation. She expressed frustration that representatives only learned about the sculpture following a press release issued by the council.

While the release described the Dublin D as a ‘public sculpture’ multiple times, she said it did not follow the usual process for the commission of public art. Cllr Moore agreed that “art is subjective,” but described this as "effectively a glorified billboard”.

“It had a large image on one side with a URL that people can follow to dublin.ie. It wasn’t created by an artist - I’m not sure by what metric it meets the description of a sculpture,” she said.

“If we are calling it a public sculpture why has it not followed any of the normal procedures around the commissioning and installation of a public sculpture. If it is just a branding exercise, which I suspect it is, why are we calling it a public sculpture.”

Cllr Moore said the process by which the Dublin D appeared is “devaluing the idea of public art” and she accused the council of using this kind of language as a “shield” to “dump advertising hoarding on one of our busiest pedestrian streets”. She believes that it required planning permission as a “large-scale outdoor advertising hoarding”.

Calling for the council to be “respectful of the integrity of our public art programme” and she is requesting a report to confirm whether the Arts Office was involved in the process, what consultation was involved, whether there was an open call to artists, and who was the selection panel for the piece.

The press release issued by Dublin City Council said the work is part of the Dublin brand, which is a collaborative initiative of Dublin City Council, Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council, Fingal County Council and South Dublin County Council, working together to promote the Dublin region internationally and showcase its strengths across business, education, tourism, investment and culture.

Green Party Cllr Claire Byrne added that there were “many questions” that needed to be asked around the processes that led to this sculpture. She explained that her time sitting on the Arts SPC as well as on assessment panels choosing artists for works means she is acutely aware of normal processes by which a public sculpture is approved.

With a “very rigorous process of applications and interviews,” Cllr Byrne said the Dublin D “looks like advertising to me”. Furthermore, she expressed frustration that other sculptures, such as a recently unveiled mural celebrating mothers breastfeeding, take years to be completed through the normal channels.

“This appeared at the top of Grafton Street with no warning, no consultation. Additionally, I've also been told that there are challenges around the provision of permanent toilets at the top of Grafton Street because of conservation concerns. Yet this appears and there doesn’t seem to be any conservation concerns in relation to this,” she said.

A council manager stated that there will be engagement with manager responsible and a report around the circumstances and processes surrounding the Dublin D will be compiled.

This content is funded by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme

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