Young Australian Charged for Supposedly Placing Googly Eyes on ‘Cast in Blue’ Artwork
A teenager 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, 19 years old, participated remotely at the local court in South Australia on Tuesday, facing with one count of property damage.
In a statement at the time of the September incident, the municipal authorities explained that CCTV footage captured a person placing artificial eyes on the artwork, which residents have nicknamed the “Cast in Blue”.
Ms Vanderhorst made no plea and informed the judge she was ill, according to news outlets, with the magistrate recommending her to secure a legal representative before her upcoming hearing in the final month of the year.
The following day the reported event, the local mayor said that restoration to the much-loved public artwork would be costly as the stickers could not be removed without harming the sculpture.
“This wilful damage to a cherished public artwork is unacceptable and disrespectful,” City of Mount Gambier mayor remarked in September. “It is not innocent amusement, it is pricey - it is also frustrating to those members of our community who have welcomed Cast in Blue.”
She said the council would pursue the “substantial” repair costs from those accountable for the vandalism.
When the sculpture was initially suggested, it received mixed reactions from the local community due to its price tag and design.
Priced at 136,000 Australian dollars ($89,000; sixty-eight thousand pounds), the sculpture represents a legendary giant animal, with the sculpture’s designers influenced by an ancient marsupial ant-eater discovered in nearby caverns that was “massive, lumbering and fascinating”.