By Sara Barnes on February 11, 2022

“His motives are still unknown, but the administration believes it was some kind of a lapse in sanity.”

A Russian security guard had a very memorable first day at his job at the Yeltsin Center in Yekaterinburg. So memorable, in fact, that he has made international news. Finding his position “boring,” he entertained himself by doodling. But this wasn’t just any idle drawing; he added something extra to artist Anna Leporskaya’s painting titled Three Figures. Created between 1932 and 1934, the work is reportedly worth $1 million and features a trio of human-like figures that are typically eyeless. Now, thanks to the security guard, two of those figures have eyes that were drawn with a ballpoint pen.

The security guard’s doodles were discovered by two eagle-eyed visitors during their trip to the museum. The incident happened in December, and the guard has since been fired and police have opened a criminal investigation into the matter. “His motives are still unknown,” exhibition curator Anna Reshetkina said, “but the administration believes it was some kind of a lapse in sanity.”

Read more: Security Guard Cures “Boredom” by Doodling Eyes on $1M Painting