🔗 Share this article Australian Teen Charged for Allegedly Attaching Googly Eyes on ‘Blue Blob’ Sculpture Authorities stated they were unable to remove the eyes without harming the artwork. A teenager from Australia has appeared in court after allegedly defacing a sizable blue sculpture of a legendary being by affixing googly eyes to it. The 19-year-old, aged 19, appeared remotely at the local court in the state of South Australia on Tuesday, charged with a single charge of damaging property. Officials commented at the moment of the September incident, the local council said that CCTV footage captured a person placing artificial eyes on the artwork, which residents have nicknamed the “Blue Blob”. Ms Vanderhorst did not enter a plea and told the court she was unwell, as reported by news outlets, with the judge advising her to find a lawyer before her upcoming hearing in the final month of the year. The damaged sculpture after the googly eyes were removed. The following day the alleged incident, the city leader stated that restoration to the much-loved public artwork would be expensive as the stickers could not be removed without damaging the art piece. “This wilful damage to a cherished community art is unacceptable and disrespectful,” Mayor Lynette Martin remarked in mid-September. “It is not harmless fun, it is costly - it is also disappointing to those members of our community who have embraced Cast in Blue.” The mayor said the council would seek the “significant” repair costs from those responsible for the vandalism. When the artwork was initially suggested, it received mixed reactions from the area residents due to its cost and appearance. Costing 136,000 Australian dollars (eighty-nine thousand US dollars; sixty-eight thousand pounds), the sculpture represents a legendary giant animal, with the creators influenced by an ancient marsupial ant-eater discovered in nearby caverns that was “massive, lumbering and fascinating”. Cast in Blue is its official name but locals called the artwork the ‘Blue Blob’.