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A teenager from Australia has appeared in court after allegedly vandalizing a large art piece of a legendary being by affixing googly eyes to it.

Amelia Vanderhorst, 19 years old, appeared remotely at the local court in the state of South Australia on Tuesday, facing with one count of damaging property.

Officials commented at the moment of the recent event, the municipal authorities explained that CCTV footage showed a person putting fake eyes on the artwork, which residents have dubbed the “Blue Blob”.

Ms Vanderhorst did not enter a plea and informed the court she was unwell, according to news outlets, with the magistrate advising her to find a lawyer before her upcoming hearing in December.

The following day the reported event, the city leader said that restoration to the much-loved community sculpture would be expensive as the adhesive eyes were impossible to be detached without harming the sculpture.

“This wilful damage to a cherished community art is inappropriate and disrespectful,” Mayor Lynette Martin said in mid-September. “It is not harmless fun, it is pricey - it is also frustrating to those members of our society who have welcomed Cast in Blue.”

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

At the time the artwork was first proposed, it drew varied responses from the area residents due to its cost and appearance.

Priced at 136,000 Australian dollars (eighty-nine thousand US dollars; £68,000), the sculpture depicts a legendary giant animal, with the creators inspired by an ancient anteater-like marsupial found in local caves that was “huge, slow-moving, and intriguing”.