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A teenager from the Land Down Under has appeared in court after reportedly defacing a large 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 that day, charged with one count of property damage.

In a statement at the time of the recent event, the municipal authorities explained that CCTV footage showed a person placing artificial eyes on the artwork, which locals have dubbed 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 next court date in December.

The following day the reported event, the city leader stated that repairs to the popular public artwork would be costly as the stickers were impossible to be removed without harming the sculpture.

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

The mayor added the council would pursue the “substantial” restoration expenses from those responsible for the damage.

At the time the artwork was initially suggested, it drew mixed reactions from the local community due to its price tag and appearance.

Costing 136,000 Australian dollars (eighty-nine thousand US dollars; sixty-eight thousand pounds), the sculpture depicts a mythical megafauna, with the creators inspired by an ancient anteater-like marsupial found in nearby caverns that was “huge, slow-moving, and intriguing”.