🔗 Share this article

A teenager from the Land Down Under has appeared in court after allegedly vandalizing a sizable art piece of a legendary being by applying googly eyes to it.

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

In a statement at the time of the recent event, the municipal authorities explained that surveillance video showed a individual putting artificial eyes on the sculpture, which residents have nicknamed the “Cast in Blue”.

Ms Vanderhorst did not enter a plea and informed the court she was unwell, according to media sources, with the judge advising her to find a legal representative before her upcoming hearing in December.

A day after the alleged incident, the local mayor said that restoration to the popular public artwork would be costly as the adhesive eyes were impossible to be removed without harming the sculpture.

“This intentional vandalism to a cherished public artwork is inappropriate and disrespectful,” City of Mount Gambier mayor said in September. “It is not innocent amusement, it is pricey - it is also frustrating to those members of our society who have embraced Cast in Blue.”

The mayor said the council would pursue the “significant” restoration expenses from those accountable for the vandalism.

When the artwork was first proposed, it drew mixed reactions from the local community due to its cost and appearance.

Costing A$136,000 (eighty-nine thousand US dollars; sixty-eight thousand pounds), the sculpture depicts a legendary giant animal, with the creators influenced by an prehistoric marsupial ant-eater discovered in nearby caverns that was “huge, slow-moving, and intriguing”.