Australian Teen Charged for Supposedly Attaching Googly Eyes on ‘Cast in Blue’ Artwork
A teenager from Australia has appeared in court after allegedly defacing a sizable blue sculpture of a legendary being by applying plastic eyes to it.
The 19-year-old, 19 years old, appeared remotely at Mount Gambier Magistrates Court in South Australia on that day, charged with one count of damaging property.
Officials commented at the moment of the September incident, the local council explained that CCTV footage showed a person putting fake eyes on the artwork, which residents have dubbed the “Blue Blob”.
The accused did not enter a plea and informed the court she was unwell, as reported by news outlets, with the judge advising her to find a lawyer before her upcoming hearing in December.
A day after the reported event, the local mayor stated that restoration to the much-loved community sculpture would be costly as the stickers were impossible to be removed without harming the art piece.
“This wilful damage to a valued public artwork is unacceptable and disrespectful,” City of Mount Gambier mayor said in September. “It is not harmless fun, it is pricey - it is also frustrating to those people of our community who have embraced the Blue Blob.”
The mayor added the local government would seek the “significant” restoration expenses from those responsible for the damage.
When the sculpture was initially suggested, it drew varied responses from the local community due to its price tag and design.
Priced at A$136,000 ($89,000; sixty-eight thousand pounds), the sculpture represents a mythical megafauna, with the creators inspired by an ancient anteater-like marsupial found in nearby caverns that was “massive, lumbering and fascinating”.
