Australian Teen Charged for Supposedly Placing Googly Eyes on ‘Cast in Blue’ Sculpture
A young person from the Land Down Under has faced legal proceedings after allegedly defacing a sizable blue sculpture of a legendary being by applying plastic eyes to it.
Amelia Vanderhorst, aged 19, appeared via phone at the local court in the state of South Australia on that day, charged with one count of damaging property.
Officials commented at the time of the September incident, the local council said that surveillance video showed a individual putting artificial eyes on the sculpture, which locals have nicknamed the “Cast in Blue”.
Ms Vanderhorst did not enter a plea and told the court she was unwell, as reported by media sources, with the judge recommending her to secure a lawyer before her next court date in December.
A day after the reported event, the city leader stated that restoration to the popular community sculpture would be costly as the adhesive eyes were impossible to be removed without damaging the sculpture.
“This intentional vandalism to a valued community art is unacceptable and disrespectful,” Mayor Lynette Martin remarked in mid-September. “It is not harmless fun, it is pricey - it is also disappointing to those people of our community who have welcomed the Blue Blob.”
The mayor added the local government would pursue the “significant” repair costs from those accountable for the damage.
At the time the sculpture was initially suggested, it drew varied responses from the area residents due to its cost and appearance.
Priced at A$136,000 (eighty-nine thousand US dollars; £68,000), the sculpture depicts a mythical megafauna, with the sculpture’s designers inspired by an prehistoric marsupial ant-eater found in nearby caverns that was “massive, lumbering and fascinating”.
