A German art gallery employee snuck in his own art in hopes of a breakthrough. Now the police are involved.

A modern art museum in Germany has fired one of its employees after the facility said that they added a personal touch to an exhibit – their own art. 

According to Munich newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung, the self-proclaimed freelance artist was a 51-year-old man who worked in technical service at the Pinakothek der Moderne, a modern art museum that holds more than 20,000 pieces, including works by Pablo Picasso, René Magritte and Salvador Dalí – and for a short time, the employee. 

The employee, who was not named in the local report, hung up a painting measuring almost 2 feet by 4 feet. A spokesperson for the museum told Süddeutsche Zeitung they weren't sure how long the painting was up, but that they don't believe it was up for very long. 

"The supervisors notice something like this immediately," a spokesperson told the outlet. 

In a statement to CBS News, museum spokesperson Tine Nehler said the item was hung in an exhibition room of the Modern Art Collection outside of its opening hours. 

"As a result of the incident, he has been banned from the museum until further notice and his employment will not be continued," Nehler said. "The work was removed in a timely manner." 

Police are also investigating. According to the Süddeutsche Zeitung, the employee had drilled two holes into an empty hallway to hang the painting, which the police are investigating for the offense of property damage. Citing police, the newspaper said the man had hoped hanging the art would be his breakthrough to fame. 

"Employees must adhere to strict security concepts and must not put valuable cultural assets at risk," Nehler said. 

The Pinakothek der Moderne is one of Europe's largest modern and contemporary art museums, housing four collections. The incident came just weeks after the opening of a new exhibit by the performance artist FLATZ, who in 1979 "posed naked as a living dartboard," allowing spectators to throw darts at him, and in the early '90s swung upside down between steel plates, hitting the metal loudly for five minutes "until he fell unconscious," the museum says. 

"The exhibition is devoted to FLATZ's radical concept of the body that, in an unmistakable way, repeatedly addresses the sensitive and fragile as well," the museum says. 

In:
• Art
• Germany

Li Cohen

Li Cohen is a social media producer and trending content writer for CBS News.

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