Australian Teen Faces Charges for Allegedly Placing Sticker Eyes on ‘Blue Blob’ Sculpture
A young person from Australia has appeared in court after allegedly defacing a sizable art piece of a legendary being by applying googly eyes to it.
Amelia Vanderhorst, aged 19, appeared via phone at Mount Gambier Magistrates Court in South Australia on that day, facing with a single charge of damaging property.
In a statement at the time of the September incident, the local council said that CCTV footage captured a individual placing artificial eyes on the artwork, which residents have nicknamed the “Cast in Blue”.
The accused made no plea and informed the judge she was ill, according to news outlets, with the judge recommending her to find a legal representative before her next court date in December.
A day after the reported event, the city leader said that restoration to the popular community sculpture would be expensive as the adhesive eyes were impossible to be detached without harming the sculpture.
“This intentional vandalism to a cherished community art is inappropriate and disrespectful,” Mayor Lynette Martin remarked in September. “It is not innocent amusement, it is pricey - it is also frustrating to those people of our society who have welcomed Cast in Blue.”
She said the local government would pursue the “significant” restoration expenses from those accountable for the vandalism.
When the sculpture was initially suggested, it drew varied responses from the local community due to its price tag and appearance.
Costing A$136,000 (eighty-nine thousand US dollars; £68,000), the sculpture depicts a mythical megafauna, with the creators influenced by an prehistoric marsupial ant-eater discovered in local caves that was “huge, slow-moving, and intriguing”.
