Young Australian Faces Charges for Supposedly Placing Googly Eyes on ‘Cast in Blue’ Artwork

Altered sculpture with eyes attached
The local council mentioned they could not take off the eyes without harming the artwork.

A young person from the Land Down Under has faced legal proceedings after reportedly vandalizing a large blue sculpture of a mythical creature by affixing googly eyes to it.

The 19-year-old, 19 years old, participated remotely at the local court in the state of South Australia on that day, charged with one count of damaging property.

Officials commented at the moment of the September incident, the municipal authorities said that CCTV footage captured a person putting fake eyes on the sculpture, which locals have dubbed the “Blue Blob”.

Ms Vanderhorst made no plea and informed the judge she was ill, as reported by news outlets, with the magistrate advising her to find a legal representative before her next court date in the final month of the year.

Sculpture after eye removal
The affected sculpture following the stickers were removed.

A day after the alleged incident, the local mayor stated that restoration to the much-loved community sculpture would be expensive as the stickers could not be removed without damaging the art piece.

“This wilful damage to a cherished public artwork is inappropriate and disrespectful,” Mayor Lynette Martin said in mid-September. “It is not innocent amusement, it is costly - it is also disappointing to those members of our society who have welcomed Cast in Blue.”

She added the local government would pursue the “significant” repair costs from those responsible for the damage.

When the artwork was initially suggested, it received varied responses from the area residents due to its price tag and design.

Priced at 136,000 Australian dollars (eighty-nine thousand US dollars; sixty-eight thousand pounds), the artwork depicts a mythical megafauna, with the creators inspired by an ancient anteater-like marsupial discovered in local caves that was “massive, lumbering and fascinating”.

Official name vs. local name
The sculpture is its official name but residents called the piece the ‘Blue Blob’.
Evelyn Wheeler
Evelyn Wheeler

A financial analyst with over a decade of experience in precious metals markets, specializing in investment strategies and economic forecasting.