Artist. He received notoriety as a German painter, sculptor, designer and choreographer in the first half of the 20th century. He enrolled at the Stuttgart Academy, before becoming a freelance artist. In 1912 he studied as a master student, under Adolf Hoelzel. He turned to abstract art and Cubists. During World War I, his career temporarily ended as he served in the German Army for four years. In 1920, he produced his first figurines for the "Triadic Ballet," which was first performed in Stuttgart in 1922 before going on tour. He developed his costumed-masked dancer into an "art figure" by synthesizing dance, costume and music, which made him be respected in the art community. In 1920, he accepted a post as a master teacher at the Staatliches Bauhaus in Weimar, a noted school of art, where he remained for nine years. He taught wall murals, stone sculpture workshop, and drawing. By 1927, he was teaching drawing the human body. He was the director of the Bauhaus stage's national tour in 1928 to July of 1929, when he left the school. He joined as a professor at the Staatliche Akademie für Kunst und Kunstgewerbe, state academy of art and applied art, from 1929 to 1932 in Breslau. He directed the stagecraft class among others. In June of 1932, he began a professorship at the Vereinigte Staatsschulen für Kunst und Kunstgewerbe, united state schools of art and applied art in Berlin. With the rise of the Nazi Party, he joined the Reich Culture Chamber, yet Schlemmer's work was seen as degenerate, leading to being dismissed from his post. After being dismissed in May of 1933, he moved with his wife and children to Switzerland, He painted landscapes and portraits to make an income. By 1934, he and his family were able to escape to England. In 1937, a first solo exhibition of Schlemmer's work was held at the London Gallery. In 1938 he had an exhibition in New York City. In 1940 he returned to Germany to work in a lacquer factory and died of a heart attack three years later. During the 1920s, he had painted many murals in public buildings and private homes, which were destroyed by Nazi Forces during World War II. The "Triadic Ballet" was revived on a number of occasions in the late 20th century and was performed with the original, restored costumes but the music and choreography were lost in the war. His wife published a collection of his diaries and letters in 1972, which were translated to English in 1990.