Australian Teen Charged for Allegedly Attaching Googly Eyes on ‘Blue Blob’ Sculpture
A teenager from Australia has appeared in court after allegedly defacing a sizable blue sculpture of a mythical creature by applying googly eyes to it.
The 19-year-old, 19 years old, participated via phone at the local court in the state of South Australia on that day, facing with a single charge of damaging property.
Officials commented at the moment of the September incident, the local council said that CCTV footage showed a individual putting fake eyes on the sculpture, which locals have dubbed the “Cast in Blue”.
Ms Vanderhorst did not enter a plea and informed the court she was ill, according to media sources, with the magistrate recommending her to find a legal representative before her upcoming hearing in the final month of the year.
The following day the alleged incident, the city leader said that repairs to the popular public artwork would be costly as the adhesive eyes could not be detached without harming the sculpture.
“This intentional vandalism to a valued public artwork is unacceptable and disrespectful,” City of Mount Gambier mayor remarked in September. “It is not harmless fun, it is costly - it is also disappointing to those members of our community who have welcomed Cast in Blue.”
She added the local government would pursue the “substantial” repair costs from those accountable for the vandalism.
When the artwork was initially suggested, it received mixed reactions from the area residents due to its cost and appearance.
Priced at 136,000 Australian dollars ($89,000; sixty-eight thousand pounds), the sculpture depicts a mythical megafauna, with the sculpture’s designers inspired by an prehistoric marsupial ant-eater discovered in nearby caverns that was “massive, lumbering and fascinating”.
