Australian Teen Charged for Supposedly Placing Googly Eyes on ‘Cast in Blue’ Artwork
A young person from Australia has appeared in court after allegedly defacing a large blue sculpture of a legendary being by applying plastic eyes to it.
Amelia Vanderhorst, 19 years old, appeared remotely at the local court in South Australia on Tuesday, facing with one count of property damage.
In a statement at the moment of the recent event, the municipal authorities said that surveillance video showed a person placing artificial eyes on the artwork, which locals have nicknamed the “Cast in Blue”.
The accused made no plea and informed the judge she was ill, as reported by media sources, with the magistrate advising her to find a legal representative before her next court date in December.
The following day the reported event, the city leader said that repairs to the popular public artwork would be costly as the adhesive eyes could not be detached without damaging the sculpture.
“This intentional vandalism to a valued community art is inappropriate and disrespectful,” City of Mount Gambier mayor said in September. “It is not harmless fun, it is costly - it is also disappointing to those people of our community who have embraced the Blue Blob.”
She said the local government would pursue the “significant” restoration expenses from those responsible for the vandalism.
At the time the artwork was first proposed, it received varied responses from the local community due to its price tag and appearance.
Priced at 136,000 Australian dollars ($89,000; £68,000), the sculpture represents a mythical megafauna, with the sculpture’s designers inspired by an prehistoric marsupial ant-eater discovered in local caves that was “massive, lumbering and fascinating”.
