Born in Zwickau, Germany in 1884, died in Valley Cottage, NY, USA in 1973. Studied at the Royal Art Academy in Dresden. At the Academy he became a very good friend with Max Pechstein. Won several art prizes like silver medal in 1912, Grand Prix de Rome 1913, etc. Made study trips in Paris 1908, Rome and Florence 1909 and Holland in 1913. In 1921 he was an art teacher at the Art Academy in Dresden, and he was considered as one of the best portraitists in the Dresden high society. He moved to USA in 1924 where he established a studio in Brooklyn Heights, New York. When he arrived in USA he was already recognized as leading muralist and architectural artisan. He painted murals (including those in Cincinnati, Ohio, in 1932), and created mosaics and stained glass for churches, synagogues and public buildings in nineteen states. He also created the major mosaic of the cathedral on Saint Louis and the mosaics for the state office building in Columbus, Ohio.
In the collection of the Smithsonian American Art Museum, Washington D.C, there is oil on canvas painting titled: “Oriental Café, Üsküb, Southern Macedonia” – interior scene with three male figures smoking at a table in front of brightly-lit window”. The painting is illustrated in the book Falk, Peter H. “Rudolf Scheffler 1884-1973”, Madison, CT, Sound View Press, 1989 no 28.
