Australian Teen Charged for Supposedly Placing Sticker Eyes on ‘Cast in Blue’ Artwork
A young person from Australia has appeared in court after allegedly defacing a sizable blue sculpture of a legendary being by affixing googly eyes to it.
The 19-year-old, 19 years old, participated via phone at Mount Gambier Magistrates Court in the state of South Australia on that day, facing with a single charge of property damage.
In a statement at the time of the September incident, the municipal authorities explained that CCTV footage captured a individual placing artificial eyes on the artwork, which locals have dubbed the “Cast in Blue”.
The accused made no plea and told the court she was unwell, according to media sources, with the judge recommending her to secure a legal representative before her upcoming hearing 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 adhesive eyes could not be removed without harming the art piece.
“This intentional vandalism 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 the Blue Blob.”
The mayor said the local government would pursue the “significant” repair costs from those responsible for the vandalism.
At the time the artwork was first proposed, it received mixed reactions from the area residents due to its price tag and appearance.
Priced at 136,000 Australian dollars ($89,000; £68,000), the artwork represents a mythical megafauna, with the sculpture’s designers influenced by an prehistoric marsupial ant-eater discovered in local caves that was “massive, lumbering and fascinating”.
