Young Australian Faces Charges for Allegedly Placing Googly Eyes on ‘Blue Blob’ Sculpture
A teenager from the Land Down Under has appeared in court after reportedly vandalizing a sizable blue sculpture of a mythical creature by applying googly eyes to it.
The 19-year-old, aged 19, appeared remotely at the local court in the state of South Australia on Tuesday, facing with a single charge of damaging property.
Officials commented at the moment of the September incident, the local council explained that surveillance video captured a person placing artificial eyes on the artwork, which residents have nicknamed the “Blue Blob”.
Ms Vanderhorst did not enter a plea and informed the court she was unwell, as reported by media sources, with the magistrate recommending her to secure a lawyer before her upcoming hearing in December.
The following day the alleged incident, the city leader said that repairs to the much-loved public artwork would be costly as the stickers were impossible to be removed without harming the art piece.
“This wilful damage to a valued community art is unacceptable and disrespectful,” Mayor Lynette Martin said in mid-September. “It is not innocent amusement, it is pricey - it is also disappointing to those members of our community who have welcomed the Blue Blob.”
The mayor added the local government would pursue the “significant” restoration expenses from those accountable for the damage.
At the time the sculpture was first proposed, it received varied responses from the local community due to its price tag and appearance.
Priced at 136,000 Australian dollars (eighty-nine thousand US dollars; sixty-eight thousand pounds), the sculpture depicts a legendary giant animal, with the sculpture’s designers influenced by an ancient marsupial ant-eater found in local caves that was “huge, slow-moving, and intriguing”.