Australian Teen Charged for Allegedly Attaching Googly Eyes on ‘Cast in Blue’ Sculpture
A teenager from Australia has faced legal proceedings after allegedly defacing a sizable blue sculpture of a mythical creature by applying plastic eyes to it.
Amelia Vanderhorst, 19 years old, participated via phone at the local court in South Australia on Tuesday, charged with a single charge of property damage.
Officials commented at the moment of the September incident, the municipal authorities explained that surveillance video captured a person placing artificial eyes on the artwork, which locals have nicknamed the “Blue Blob”.
Ms Vanderhorst did not enter a plea and informed the judge she was ill, as reported by news outlets, with the magistrate recommending her to find a lawyer before her next court date in the final month of the year.
The following day the reported event, the city leader stated that repairs to the popular community sculpture would be costly as the adhesive eyes could not be detached without harming the art piece.
“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 costly - it is also disappointing to those people of our community who have embraced Cast in Blue.”
The mayor added the local government would pursue the “significant” restoration expenses from those responsible for the damage.
When the sculpture was first proposed, it received mixed reactions from the area residents due to its cost and appearance.
Priced at 136,000 Australian dollars (eighty-nine thousand US dollars; sixty-eight thousand pounds), the sculpture depicts a legendary giant animal, with the sculpture’s designers inspired by an prehistoric anteater-like marsupial found in local caves that was “huge, slow-moving, and intriguing”.
