Australian Teen Charged for Allegedly Attaching Googly Eyes on ‘Cast in Blue’ Artwork
A teenager from the Land Down Under has faced legal proceedings after allegedly defacing a large blue sculpture of a mythical creature by affixing plastic eyes to it.
The 19-year-old, aged 19, appeared remotely at the local court in South Australia on Tuesday, charged with one count of damaging property.
In a statement at the moment of the September incident, the municipal authorities explained that surveillance video showed a individual placing artificial eyes on the artwork, which locals have nicknamed the “Blue Blob”.
The accused made no plea and told the judge she was ill, as reported by media sources, with the magistrate recommending her to find a lawyer before her upcoming hearing in December.
The following day the reported event, the city leader stated that restoration to the much-loved community sculpture would be costly as the stickers could not be detached without harming the sculpture.
“This wilful damage to a cherished community art is unacceptable and disrespectful,” Mayor Lynette Martin said in September. “It is not innocent amusement, it is pricey - it is also frustrating to those members of our society who have welcomed the Blue Blob.”
The mayor said the council would seek the “significant” restoration expenses from those responsible for the damage.
When the sculpture was initially suggested, it received mixed reactions from the local community due to its price tag and design.
Costing 136,000 Australian dollars ($89,000; sixty-eight thousand pounds), the sculpture depicts a mythical megafauna, with the creators inspired by an prehistoric anteater-like marsupial discovered in local caves that was “massive, lumbering and fascinating”.
