Australian Teen Charged for Supposedly Placing Googly Eyes on ‘Cast in Blue’ Artwork
A young person from Australia has faced legal proceedings after reportedly defacing a sizable art piece of a legendary being by affixing plastic eyes to it.
Amelia Vanderhorst, aged 19, participated via phone at the local court in the state of South Australia on that day, charged with one count of property damage.
In a statement at the moment of the September incident, the local council said that CCTV footage captured a person placing artificial eyes on the artwork, which locals have dubbed the “Cast in Blue”.
The accused did not enter a plea and informed the judge she was unwell, as reported by news outlets, with the judge advising her to find a legal representative before her next court date in the final month of the year.
The following day the alleged incident, the local mayor stated that restoration to the much-loved public artwork would be costly as the adhesive eyes were impossible to be removed 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 frustrating to those members of our community who have welcomed the Blue Blob.”
The mayor added the local government would seek the “substantial” repair costs from those responsible for the vandalism.
At the time the sculpture was initially suggested, it drew varied responses from the area residents due to its price tag and appearance.
Costing 136,000 Australian dollars ($89,000; sixty-eight thousand pounds), the artwork depicts a legendary giant animal, with the creators influenced by an prehistoric anteater-like marsupial discovered in nearby caverns that was “huge, slow-moving, and intriguing”.
