Young Australian Faces Charges for Supposedly Attaching Googly Eyes on ‘Blue Blob’ Sculpture
A teenager from the Land Down Under has appeared in court after reportedly defacing a large art piece of a legendary being by affixing googly eyes to it.
Amelia Vanderhorst, aged 19, participated remotely at Mount Gambier Magistrates Court in South Australia on Tuesday, facing with one count of property damage.
Officials commented at the time of the September incident, the municipal authorities explained that surveillance video captured a person putting artificial eyes on the artwork, which residents have dubbed the “Cast in Blue”.
The accused made no plea and told the judge she was ill, as reported by media sources, with the judge recommending her to secure a legal representative before her upcoming hearing in December.
A day after the reported event, the city leader said that repairs to the popular public artwork would be expensive as the adhesive eyes could not be detached without harming the art piece.
“This intentional vandalism to a valued community art is inappropriate and disrespectful,” Mayor Lynette Martin said in September. “It is not innocent amusement, it is costly - it is also frustrating to those members of our community who have welcomed Cast in Blue.”
The mayor said the local government would seek the “significant” repair costs from those responsible for the damage.
When the sculpture was initially suggested, it drew mixed reactions from the local community due to its price tag and appearance.
Costing A$136,000 (eighty-nine thousand US dollars; £68,000), the sculpture represents a mythical megafauna, with the creators influenced by an prehistoric anteater-like marsupial found in local caves that was “massive, lumbering and fascinating”.