Australian Teen Faces Charges for Allegedly Placing Sticker Eyes on ‘Cast in Blue’ Sculpture
A young person from the Land Down Under has faced legal proceedings after allegedly defacing a large art piece of a mythical creature by affixing googly eyes to it.
Amelia Vanderhorst, 19 years old, participated remotely at the local court in South Australia on Tuesday, charged with a single charge of damaging property.
In a statement at the time of the September incident, the local council explained that surveillance video captured a individual putting fake eyes on the sculpture, which residents have dubbed the “Blue Blob”.
The accused did not enter a plea and told the court she was ill, according to news outlets, with the judge recommending her to find a legal representative before her upcoming hearing in December.
A day after the alleged incident, the city leader stated that restoration to the popular community sculpture would be costly as the adhesive eyes were impossible to be detached without damaging the sculpture.
“This intentional vandalism to a valued public artwork is unacceptable and disrespectful,” City of Mount Gambier mayor said in mid-September. “It is not innocent amusement, 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 “substantial” restoration expenses from those accountable for the damage.
When the artwork was first proposed, it drew mixed reactions from the local community due to its price tag and design.
Costing 136,000 Australian dollars ($89,000; £68,000), the sculpture represents a mythical megafauna, with the creators inspired by an ancient anteater-like marsupial found in local caves that was “huge, slow-moving, and intriguing”.
