Arthur Unger, the Luxembourg artist best known for his African-inspired pyrochimiograms on copper, died this Sunday morning. He was born in Luxembourg on 11 July 1932. Unger spent several years in the Belgian Congo from 1956 onwards and then travelled to various countries in West Africa. His African experiences, in contact with unique traditions and landscapes, strongly influenced his work.

In the 1970s, he developed a unique technique of painting with fire on thin sheets of electrolytic copper, which he called "pyrochimiogrammes." This technique, which uses the fire of a blowtorch to create colours on copper, enabled him to transpose his visions of the African continent.

Unger was a material artist and a painter of informal expression. He also produced a large body of work in Chinese ink on paper, inspired by Asian calligraphy. He has exhibited in Europe and China, taking part in over 80 exhibitions. He was awarded the Grand Duke's Prize in Luxembourg in 1974 and the Phoenix Art Price in China in 2017.

Arthur Unger left behind a rich and original artistic legacy, marked by his passion for Africa and his unique exploration of matter and fire. We offer our condolences to his family.

This article was originally published in .