Australian Teen Faces Charges for Allegedly Attaching Googly Eyes on ‘Cast in Blue’ Artwork
A young person from Australia has faced legal proceedings after reportedly defacing a sizable blue sculpture of a legendary being by affixing plastic eyes to it.
The 19-year-old, 19 years old, participated remotely at Mount Gambier Magistrates Court in South Australia on Tuesday, facing with a single charge of property damage.
Officials commented at the moment of the September incident, the municipal authorities said that CCTV footage showed a individual putting fake eyes on the sculpture, which residents have dubbed the “Blue Blob”.
The accused did not enter a plea and told the court she was ill, according to news outlets, with the magistrate advising her to secure a lawyer before her next court date in December.
A day after the alleged incident, the city leader stated that repairs to the much-loved community sculpture would be expensive as the adhesive eyes were impossible to be detached without damaging the art piece.
“This intentional vandalism to a valued community art is inappropriate and disrespectful,” Mayor Lynette Martin remarked in September. “It is not harmless fun, it is costly - it is also frustrating to those members of our society who have welcomed the Blue Blob.”
The mayor said the council would seek the “significant” restoration expenses from those accountable for the damage.
When the artwork was first proposed, it received varied responses from the local community due to its price tag and design.
Costing A$136,000 ($89,000; sixty-eight thousand pounds), the sculpture represents a legendary giant animal, with the sculpture’s designers influenced by an ancient marsupial ant-eater discovered in local caves that was “massive, lumbering and fascinating”.
