Australian Teen Charged for Supposedly Attaching Sticker Eyes on ‘Blue Blob’ Sculpture
A young person from Australia has appeared in court after allegedly defacing a large blue sculpture 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 the state of South Australia on that day, charged with a single charge of damaging property.
In a statement at the moment of the September incident, the local council explained that CCTV footage captured a individual putting artificial eyes on the artwork, which residents have dubbed the “Cast in Blue”.
The accused did not enter a plea and told the court she was ill, as reported by news outlets, with the judge recommending her to secure a legal representative before her upcoming hearing in the final month of the year.
The following day the alleged incident, the city leader stated that restoration to the much-loved community sculpture would be expensive as the adhesive eyes were impossible to be detached without damaging the art piece.
“This wilful damage to a valued community art is inappropriate and disrespectful,” Mayor Lynette Martin said in mid-September. “It is not innocent amusement, it is pricey - it is also frustrating to those people of our society who have embraced Cast in Blue.”
The mayor added the council would pursue the “substantial” repair costs from those responsible for the damage.
When the artwork was initially suggested, it received varied responses from the local community due to its price tag and design.
Costing A$136,000 (eighty-nine thousand US dollars; £68,000), the sculpture depicts a legendary giant animal, with the sculpture’s designers inspired by an prehistoric anteater-like marsupial discovered in nearby caverns that was “huge, slow-moving, and intriguing”.
