A young person from the Land Down Under has faced legal proceedings after allegedly defacing a large blue sculpture of a mythical creature by affixing googly eyes to it.
Amelia Vanderhorst, 19 years old, appeared remotely at the local court in South Australia on that day, charged with a single charge of damaging property.
Officials commented at the time of the recent event, the local council explained that CCTV footage showed a individual placing artificial eyes on the sculpture, which residents have nicknamed the “Cast in Blue”.
Ms Vanderhorst did not enter a plea and told the court she was ill, as reported by news outlets, with the magistrate advising her to find a legal representative before her upcoming hearing in December.
The following day the alleged incident, the local mayor stated that repairs to the popular public artwork would be expensive as the stickers could not be removed without damaging the art piece.
“This intentional vandalism to a cherished public artwork is unacceptable and disrespectful,” Mayor Lynette Martin said in September. “It is not harmless fun, 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 “significant” restoration expenses from those accountable for the vandalism.
When the artwork was initially suggested, it drew 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 mythical megafauna, with the sculpture’s designers influenced by an ancient marsupial ant-eater found in nearby caverns that was “massive, lumbering and fascinating”.
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