Born in 1927 in Rementgrün, studied at the Hochschule für Bildende Künste West-Berlin in the class of Arthur Degner and at the Kunstakademie Dresden in the classes of Wilhelm Rudolph and Hans Grundig.
Adler is known as a major and independent representative of constructive concrete art that deals with structures that are composed of repeating elements.
He took part in numerous national and international solo exhibitions, for example at Albertinum Dresden, at the Kassák and Kiscelli Museum in Budapest, at Museum für Angewandte Kunst Gera, at the Museum Modern Art Hünfeld, at Folkwag Museum Essen, at the Kunstsammlungen Chemnitz and the Kunsthalle Malmö.