With the death of his father in 1856, Sperl became the sole provider of his sick mother and started an apprenticeship to become a lithographer.

At this time the Kunstgewerbeschule was led by August von Kreling, a versatile history painter and sculptor.

Sperl met the painters Rudolf Hirth du Frênes and Theodor Alt there.

Sperl gave up his position as a director in the spring of 1865 after he had earned enough money to attend the academy in Munich.

In December of that year Max Liebermann moved from Venice to Munich, and Sperl met him sometime in 1879, most likely through Leibl.

On 23 July 1914, a few days before the outbreak of World War I, Sperl died in Bad Aibling.