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A teenager from Australia has faced legal proceedings after allegedly defacing a sizable art piece of a mythical creature by affixing googly eyes to it.

Amelia Vanderhorst, 19 years old, appeared via phone at the local court in South Australia on that day, facing with a single charge of property damage.

Officials commented at the time of the recent event, the local council said that surveillance video 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 judge she was ill, according to news outlets, with the judge recommending her to secure a legal representative before her upcoming hearing in the final month of the year.

The following day the reported event, the local mayor stated that repairs to the popular community sculpture would be costly as the stickers were impossible to be removed without damaging the sculpture.

“This wilful damage to a cherished community art is unacceptable and disrespectful,” City of Mount Gambier mayor said in September. “It is not harmless fun, it is pricey - it is also disappointing to those members of our community who have embraced the Blue Blob.”

The mayor added the local government would seek the “significant” restoration expenses from those responsible for the vandalism.

When the sculpture was initially suggested, it received varied responses from the local community due to its cost and appearance.

Priced at 136,000 Australian dollars ($89,000; sixty-eight thousand pounds), the sculpture depicts a legendary giant animal, with the creators influenced by an ancient anteater-like marsupial found in nearby caverns that was “massive, lumbering and fascinating”.