Günther Uecker, a prominent figure in post-war German art and a key member of the contemporary ZERO art movement, has died on Tuesday at the age of 95, his family told dpa.

He had been hospitalized in the western German city of Dusseldorf.

Born in 1930 in northern Germany, Uecker rose to international fame by incorporating carpenter’s nails into art. His signature nail reliefs became icons of modern art and are displayed in museums and political institutions worldwide.

Uecker applied nails to canvases and objects like chairs and pianos, describing his work as “sensory values from the time.”

He joined the ZERO group in 1961, which aimed for a fresh start for German art after World War II. He created light art and installations such as the noise-based “Terror Orchestra,” an assembly of household appliances such as vacuum cleaners and washing machines.

Uecker travelled globally with a humanitarian peace message, exhibiting in many countries, including dictatorships. He created ash paintings after Chernobyl, advocated for the indigenous Navajo people, and displayed human rights messages in Beijing

-dpa