Young Australian Faces Charges for Allegedly Attaching Googly Eyes on ‘Cast in Blue’ Artwork
A teenager from Australia has appeared in court after allegedly vandalizing a sizable art piece of a legendary being by applying googly eyes to it.
Amelia Vanderhorst, aged 19, appeared via phone at the local court in South Australia on that day, charged with a single charge of property damage.
In a statement at the time of the September incident, the local council explained that surveillance video captured a individual placing fake eyes on the sculpture, which locals have nicknamed the “Cast in Blue”.
The accused made no plea and told the court she was unwell, according to news outlets, with the magistrate advising her to find a lawyer before her next court date in December.
The following day the alleged incident, the city leader stated that restoration to the much-loved public artwork would be costly as the stickers could not be removed without harming the art piece.
“This wilful damage to a cherished community art is inappropriate and disrespectful,” Mayor Lynette Martin remarked in mid-September. “It is not innocent amusement, it is pricey - it is also frustrating to those people of our society who have welcomed the Blue Blob.”
She added the local government would seek the “significant” restoration expenses from those responsible for the vandalism.
When the sculpture was initially suggested, it received varied responses from the area residents due to its price tag and appearance.
Priced at A$136,000 (eighty-nine thousand US dollars; £68,000), the sculpture represents a legendary giant animal, with the sculpture’s designers inspired by an prehistoric anteater-like marsupial discovered in nearby caverns that was “massive, lumbering and fascinating”.
