Young Australian Charged for Supposedly Attaching Googly Eyes on ‘Cast in Blue’ Sculpture
A young person from the Land Down Under has appeared in court after allegedly defacing a sizable blue sculpture of a mythical creature by affixing googly 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 a single charge of property damage.
In a statement at the moment of the September incident, the local council said that surveillance video captured a individual placing fake eyes on the artwork, 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 advising her to secure a legal representative before her upcoming hearing in December.
The following day the reported event, the city leader stated that repairs to the popular public artwork would be expensive as the stickers were impossible to be detached without damaging the sculpture.
“This wilful damage 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 pricey - it is also disappointing to those members of our society who have welcomed the Blue Blob.”
She said the council would pursue the “significant” restoration expenses from those accountable for the damage.
When the artwork was first proposed, it received mixed reactions from the area residents due to its cost and appearance.
Priced at A$136,000 ($89,000; £68,000), the sculpture represents a legendary giant animal, with the sculpture’s designers inspired by an ancient anteater-like marsupial discovered in local caves that was “massive, lumbering and fascinating”.
