Charles Schlein was a painter and sculptor born in Satanov, Russia on April 5, 1899. He emigrated to the US in 1910 at the age of 11 with his siblings and his mother. He attended and graduated from the National Academy of the Arts on 57th Street in New York City. While there he studied under Kroll, Hawthorne, and other artists of the Ashcan School. Charles met his wife Gerry at the time he set up his first studio in New York City where he showed his work.