In 1900, Schneid’s father, a Jewish law court director in Vienna, moved with his family to Jablunkova, Slovakia, where Otto was born. In 1918 the family returned to Vienna. Schneid studied art history, philosophy, and Oriental studies at universities in Vienna and Paris from 1918 to 1926.
From 1926-1936 he worked as a freelance artist, studied and traveled in Europe lecturing on art. At the same time he wrote a book on Chinese art that was published in 1934. During the following two years Schneid established an art museum in Vilnius, Lithuania (then in Poland), where he remained until 1938, after which he returned to Vienna.
In 1939, following the annexation of Austria to Germany, he emigrated to Palestine with an appointment at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. In 1946 he published a book on biblical frescoes of the Dura Europus Synagogue in Syria. From 1947 until 1960 he was teacher of art history at the Technion in Haifa. Alongside he continued to paint and sculpt, and designed models for monuments.
Schneid emigrated to the USA in 1960. In 1962 he introduced turntable paintings and opticism, two techniques, to revise or abolish conventional perspectives and the way a painting is seen. In 1963 Schneid moved to Canada.
His works of art included portraits, landscapes and sculptures done in various media, such as pastels, oils, stone, bronze, wood and clay. He often used biblically influenced motifs.
Schneid’s individual shows included Galleria d’arte internazionale, Florence; International Gallery and Columbia University both in New York; Topovow, Hollywood, California; Cascone, Toronto and others. His works of art are part of the collections of Pitti Palace, Florence; Albertina, Vienna; British Museum, London; Roosevelt Memorial Library, Hyde Park, New York; Skopje Museum of Modern Art, Macedonia (formerly Yugoslavia), and also in private collections.