🔗 Share this article Australian Teen Charged for Allegedly Placing Googly Eyes on ‘Cast in Blue’ Sculpture The local council mentioned they could not remove the eyes without damaging the artwork. A young person from Australia has appeared in court after allegedly vandalizing a large blue sculpture of a legendary being by applying plastic eyes to it. The 19-year-old, aged 19, appeared remotely at the local court in the state of South Australia on that day, charged with a single charge of property damage. In a statement at the time of the recent event, the local council said that surveillance video showed a person placing fake eyes on the sculpture, which residents have nicknamed the “Blue Blob”. The accused did not enter a plea and told the judge she was ill, as reported by media sources, with the magistrate recommending her to find a lawyer before her next court date in the final month of the year. The affected sculpture after the stickers were removed. A day after the reported event, the city leader said that repairs to the popular public artwork would be costly as the adhesive eyes could not be removed without harming the sculpture. “This intentional vandalism to a cherished public artwork is unacceptable and disrespectful,” City of Mount Gambier mayor said in September. “It is not harmless fun, it is costly - it is also frustrating to those people of our community who have welcomed Cast in Blue.” She added the council would seek the “substantial” repair costs from those accountable for the damage. When the sculpture was first proposed, it received varied responses from the local community due to its price tag and design. Costing A$136,000 ($89,000; sixty-eight thousand pounds), the artwork represents a legendary giant animal, with the creators influenced by an ancient marsupial ant-eater found in nearby caverns that was “huge, slow-moving, and intriguing”. The sculpture is its official name but residents nicknamed the piece the ‘Blue Blob’.