Australian Teen Charged for Allegedly Placing Googly Eyes on ‘Blue Blob’ Artwork
A teenager from Australia has appeared in court after allegedly vandalizing a sizable art piece of a legendary being by affixing plastic eyes to it.
The 19-year-old, aged 19, appeared remotely at Mount Gambier Magistrates Court in South Australia on Tuesday, facing with a single charge of damaging property.
In a statement at the time of the recent event, the municipal authorities said that surveillance video captured a person putting fake eyes on the artwork, which residents have dubbed the “Cast in Blue”.
Ms Vanderhorst made no plea and told the court she was unwell, according to media sources, with the judge recommending her to find a lawyer before her upcoming hearing in the final month of the year.
A day after the alleged incident, the city leader said that restoration to the much-loved public artwork would be expensive as the adhesive eyes could not be detached without damaging the sculpture.
“This intentional vandalism to a cherished community art is inappropriate and disrespectful,” City of Mount Gambier mayor said in mid-September. “It is not innocent amusement, it is pricey - it is also frustrating to those people of our community who have embraced Cast in Blue.”
She said the council would pursue the “significant” restoration expenses from those responsible for the vandalism.
At the time the sculpture was initially suggested, it drew varied responses from the local community due to its cost and appearance.
Priced at A$136,000 (eighty-nine thousand US dollars; sixty-eight thousand pounds), the sculpture represents a legendary giant animal, with the sculpture’s designers influenced by an prehistoric anteater-like marsupial discovered in local caves that was “massive, lumbering and fascinating”.
