Young Australian Faces Charges for Supposedly Attaching Googly Eyes on ‘Blue Blob’ Artwork

A young person from the Land Down Under has faced legal proceedings after allegedly vandalizing a sizable art piece of a legendary being by affixing googly eyes to it.

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

Officials commented at the time of the September incident, the municipal authorities explained that CCTV footage showed a person putting artificial eyes on the artwork, which residents have nicknamed the “Cast in Blue”.

The accused made no plea and informed the court she was ill, according to media sources, with the judge recommending her to secure a lawyer before her upcoming hearing in December.

A day after the reported event, the local mayor said that repairs to the much-loved community sculpture would be expensive as the adhesive eyes were impossible to be detached without damaging the art piece.

“This wilful damage 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 frustrating to those members of our community who have welcomed Cast in Blue.”

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

At the time the sculpture was first proposed, it drew mixed reactions from the local community due to its price tag and design.

Costing A$136,000 ($89,000; £68,000), the sculpture represents a mythical megafauna, with the creators inspired by an prehistoric marsupial ant-eater found in local caves that was “massive, lumbering and fascinating”.