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A young person from Australia has faced legal proceedings after reportedly vandalizing a large blue sculpture of a mythical creature by applying googly eyes to it.

Amelia Vanderhorst, aged 19, appeared via phone at Mount Gambier Magistrates Court in South Australia on Tuesday, facing with a single charge of property damage.

In a statement at the moment of the recent event, the municipal authorities explained that CCTV footage captured a person placing fake eyes on the artwork, which locals have dubbed the “Blue Blob”.

Ms Vanderhorst did not enter a plea and informed the court she was ill, as reported by media sources, with the magistrate recommending her to find a legal representative before her upcoming hearing in December.

The following day the alleged incident, the local mayor stated that restoration to the popular public artwork would be expensive as the stickers could not be removed without damaging the sculpture.

“This wilful damage to a cherished public artwork is unacceptable and disrespectful,” Mayor Lynette Martin remarked in mid-September. “It is not harmless fun, it is costly - it is also frustrating to those people of our society who have welcomed the Blue Blob.”

The mayor said the council would seek the “significant” restoration expenses from those responsible for the damage.

When the artwork was initially suggested, it drew mixed reactions from the area residents due to its price tag and appearance.

Priced at A$136,000 ($89,000; sixty-eight thousand pounds), the artwork represents a legendary giant animal, with the sculpture’s designers inspired by an ancient anteater-like marsupial discovered in nearby caverns that was “massive, lumbering and fascinating”.