Australian Teen Charged for Supposedly Attaching Googly Eyes on ‘Cast in Blue’ Sculpture
A young person from Australia has appeared in court after allegedly defacing a sizable art piece of a mythical creature by affixing plastic eyes to it.
The 19-year-old, 19 years old, participated remotely at Mount Gambier Magistrates Court in South Australia on that day, charged with a single charge of property damage.
In a statement at the moment of the September incident, the local council explained that CCTV footage captured a individual 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 secure a legal representative before her upcoming hearing in December.
A day after the reported event, the city leader stated that repairs to the popular public artwork would be costly as the stickers were impossible to be removed without harming the art piece.
“This intentional vandalism to a cherished community art is unacceptable and disrespectful,” Mayor Lynette Martin said in mid-September. “It is not innocent amusement, it is pricey - it is also disappointing to those people of our community who have welcomed the Blue Blob.”
The mayor added the council would seek the “substantial” restoration expenses from those responsible for the vandalism.
When the artwork was first proposed, it received mixed reactions from the local community due to its price tag and appearance.
Priced at A$136,000 (eighty-nine thousand US dollars; £68,000), the artwork represents a legendary giant animal, with the sculpture’s designers inspired by an ancient anteater-like marsupial found in nearby caverns that was “huge, slow-moving, and intriguing”.
