Australian Teen Charged for Allegedly Attaching Googly Eyes on ‘Blue Blob’ Artwork
A young person from Australia has faced legal proceedings after reportedly vandalizing a sizable art piece of a legendary being by applying plastic eyes to it.
The 19-year-old, aged 19, participated via phone at Mount Gambier Magistrates Court in the state of South Australia on that day, facing with a single charge of damaging property.
Officials commented at the moment of the September incident, the municipal authorities said that surveillance video showed a individual placing fake eyes on the sculpture, which residents have nicknamed the “Blue Blob”.
Ms Vanderhorst did not enter a plea and informed the court she was ill, as reported by news outlets, with the magistrate recommending her to find a legal representative before her upcoming hearing in December.
A day after the reported event, the local mayor stated that restoration to the popular public artwork would be costly as the adhesive eyes could not be detached without damaging the sculpture.
“This wilful damage to a valued public artwork is unacceptable and disrespectful,” Mayor Lynette Martin remarked in mid-September. “It is not harmless fun, it is costly - it is also disappointing to those people of our society who have embraced Cast in Blue.”
She said the council would pursue 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 cost and appearance.
Priced at A$136,000 ($89,000; sixty-eight thousand pounds), the sculpture depicts a mythical megafauna, with the creators inspired by an ancient marsupial ant-eater found in nearby caverns that was “huge, slow-moving, and intriguing”.