Australian Teen Charged for Supposedly Attaching Googly Eyes on ‘Blue Blob’ Sculpture

A teenager from Australia has faced legal proceedings after allegedly defacing a large blue sculpture of a legendary being by applying googly eyes to it.

The 19-year-old, aged 19, appeared via phone at Mount Gambier Magistrates Court in South Australia on Tuesday, charged with one count of property damage.

Officials commented at the time of the recent event, the municipal authorities explained that CCTV footage captured a person putting artificial eyes on the sculpture, which locals have dubbed the “Blue Blob”.

Ms Vanderhorst made no plea and informed the court she was unwell, as reported by media sources, with the magistrate recommending her to secure a legal representative before her next court date in December.

A day after the alleged incident, the city leader said that restoration to the much-loved community sculpture would be costly as the stickers could not be detached without damaging the art piece.

“This wilful damage to a cherished community art is unacceptable and disrespectful,” City of Mount Gambier mayor said in mid-September. “It is not harmless fun, it is pricey - it is also disappointing to those people of our community who have welcomed Cast in Blue.”

The mayor said the council would seek the “substantial” repair costs from those responsible for the vandalism.

At the time the sculpture was first proposed, it received mixed reactions from the area residents due to its price tag and design.

Costing 136,000 Australian dollars (eighty-nine thousand US dollars; sixty-eight thousand pounds), the sculpture depicts a mythical megafauna, with the sculpture’s designers inspired by an ancient marsupial ant-eater found in local caves that was “huge, slow-moving, and intriguing”.