Born in Germany in 1927. After serving in WWII, studied at an art school in Hamburg and created a lithograph print for the first time. The same year, held a solo exhibition in Lubeck. From 1951 to 1960, taught lithograph at his alma mater, and in 1960 garnered attention for being awarded the Germany Award at the Mannheim Print Exhibition. Lived and worked in Paris for 3 years, and in 1964 submitted to "Dokumenta 3" in Kassel.

From around 1965, began to use nude photographs taken by his photographer wife to create lithographs and paintings, tying together eroticism, surrealism, and German expressionism in a precise style. 1968, was awarded the Museum of Contemporary Art, Kanagawa Director's Prize at the Tokyo International Print Biennale, leading him to gain recognition in Japan.