Australian Teen Faces Charges for Supposedly Placing Sticker Eyes on ‘Blue Blob’ Sculpture
A teenager from Australia has faced legal proceedings after reportedly vandalizing a large art piece of a mythical creature by applying googly eyes to it.
The 19-year-old, aged 19, participated via phone at the local court in the state of South Australia on Tuesday, facing with one count of property damage.
In a statement at the moment of the recent event, the local council explained that CCTV footage showed a person putting artificial eyes on the artwork, which locals have dubbed the “Blue Blob”.
Ms Vanderhorst did not enter a plea and told the court she was unwell, as reported by news outlets, with the magistrate recommending her to secure a legal representative before her next court date in the final month of the year.
A day after the alleged incident, the city leader stated that repairs to the much-loved public artwork would be costly as the stickers were impossible to be removed without harming the art piece.
“This wilful damage to a valued community art is unacceptable and disrespectful,” Mayor Lynette Martin said in September. “It is not harmless fun, it is pricey - it is also disappointing to those people of our society who have welcomed Cast in Blue.”
The mayor added the local government would seek the “substantial” restoration expenses from those accountable for the vandalism.
At the time the sculpture was initially suggested, it received varied responses from the area residents due to its cost and appearance.
Priced at 136,000 Australian dollars (eighty-nine thousand US dollars; £68,000), the artwork represents a mythical megafauna, with the sculpture’s designers influenced by an prehistoric anteater-like marsupial discovered in nearby caverns that was “huge, slow-moving, and intriguing”.
