Suspicions about President Donald Trump’s relationship with Russian President Vladimir Putin took on a whole new meaning Tuesday night.
People walking around Chelsea and Williamsburg were witnesses to a projection of a drawing of Putin hugging and kissing the shoulder of a pregnant Trump.
The projections were advertising the dating app Hater, which matches people based on what they hate. They were seen on buildings at 14th Street and Eighth Avenue, 15th Street and Ninth Avenue, and Wythe Avenue and North Sixth Street.
Brendan Alper, the founder of the app, said they hoped to make people laugh. The creators plan to do the projections again, but didn’t have specific dates or locations.
“There’s a lot of animosity out there, regardless of what side you’re on,” he said in a statement. “We’re just trying to make people laugh. Through humor, hate can turn into love.”
This isn’t the first public art display that has depicted a romantic relationship between the two leaders. A painting by an artist in Lithuania of Trump and Putin kissing sparked attention in May last year.
The projections appeared amid questions about Trump’s connections to Russia. Also on Tuesday, the New York Times reported that Trump’s campaign had repeated contact with Russian officials before the election.
