Young Australian Faces Charges for Supposedly Attaching Googly Eyes on ‘Cast in Blue’ Sculpture
A teenager from Australia has appeared in court after reportedly defacing a large art piece of a legendary being by affixing plastic eyes to it.
The 19-year-old, 19 years old, appeared remotely at the local court in South Australia on that day, charged with one count of damaging property.
In a statement at the time of the recent event, the local council said that CCTV footage showed a person putting artificial eyes on the sculpture, which locals have nicknamed the “Blue Blob”.
Ms Vanderhorst made no plea and informed the court she was ill, according to news outlets, with the judge recommending her to find a legal representative before her upcoming hearing in December.
A day after the alleged incident, the city leader stated that repairs to the popular public artwork would be costly as the adhesive eyes could not be detached without damaging the art piece.
“This intentional vandalism to a valued community art is inappropriate and disrespectful,” Mayor Lynette Martin said in mid-September. “It is not harmless fun, it is pricey - it is also frustrating to those people of our society who have embraced Cast in Blue.”
She added the local government would seek the “substantial” restoration expenses from those accountable for the damage.
When the artwork was initially suggested, it received mixed reactions from the local community due to its price tag and design.
Costing 136,000 Australian dollars (eighty-nine thousand US dollars; £68,000), the sculpture depicts a mythical megafauna, with the sculpture’s designers inspired by an prehistoric anteater-like marsupial discovered in nearby caverns that was “massive, lumbering and fascinating”.
