Australian Teen Faces Charges for Supposedly Attaching Sticker Eyes on ‘Cast in Blue’ Artwork
A teenager from the Land Down Under has appeared in court after allegedly defacing a large art piece of a mythical creature by affixing plastic eyes to it.
The 19-year-old, 19 years old, participated via phone at the local court in South Australia on that day, charged with one count of damaging property.
Officials commented at the time of the recent event, the local council said that CCTV footage showed a person placing artificial eyes on the sculpture, which residents have nicknamed the “Blue Blob”.
The accused did not enter a plea and informed the judge she was ill, according to media sources, with the judge recommending her to secure a lawyer before her upcoming hearing in the final month of the year.
The following day the reported event, the city leader said that repairs to the much-loved community sculpture would be costly as the adhesive eyes could not be removed without harming the sculpture.
“This intentional vandalism to a cherished community art is unacceptable and disrespectful,” Mayor Lynette Martin said in mid-September. “It is not innocent amusement, it is costly - it is also disappointing to those people of our society who have embraced Cast in Blue.”
The mayor added the council would seek the “substantial” restoration expenses from those responsible for the damage.
At the time the sculpture was first proposed, it received varied responses from the area residents due to its price tag and design.
Costing 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 anteater-like marsupial discovered in nearby caverns that was “massive, lumbering and fascinating”.
