Australian Teen Faces Charges for Allegedly Placing Sticker Eyes on ‘Blue Blob’ Sculpture

A teenager from the Land Down Under has appeared in court after allegedly vandalizing a sizable blue sculpture of a legendary being by affixing plastic eyes to it.

Amelia Vanderhorst, aged 19, appeared remotely at Mount Gambier Magistrates Court in the state of South Australia on Tuesday, charged with a single charge of property damage.

In a statement at the time of the September incident, the local council explained that CCTV footage showed a individual placing fake eyes on the sculpture, which locals have nicknamed the “Cast in Blue”.

Ms Vanderhorst did not enter a plea and informed the court she was ill, as reported by media sources, with the judge recommending her to find a legal representative before her next court date in the final month of the year.

The following day the reported event, the local mayor stated that repairs to the much-loved community sculpture would be expensive as the adhesive eyes could not be removed without damaging the sculpture.

“This wilful damage to a cherished community art is unacceptable and disrespectful,” City of Mount Gambier mayor remarked in mid-September. “It is not innocent amusement, it is costly - it is also frustrating to those members of our community who have welcomed Cast in Blue.”

She said the council would pursue the “substantial” restoration expenses from those accountable for the damage.

When the artwork was first proposed, it received varied responses from the local community 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 legendary giant animal, with the sculpture’s designers inspired by an ancient anteater-like marsupial found in nearby caverns that was “huge, slow-moving, and intriguing”.