Kohler was born in Cape Town in 1976. He initially channelled his creativity into completing a degree in Graphic Design (1998), at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology. However, he hankered to create paintings. He took odd jobs to raise money for art materials; it was through such a job at a construction site that his imagination was triggered by disused rubble. With a need for art materials, he began collecting found items and creating assemblages that would be incorporated into paintings. A Cape Town art dealer responded enthusiastically to these works, which began selling. This modus operandi has come to define his art.
