Nikolai Dmitriyevich Kuznetsov was born in 1850 in the Kherson province. He is Greek by origin. Nikolay Dmitrievich is the son of a wealthy Kherson landowner, was brought up in Odessa, and studied at the 3rd gymnasium. N.D. Kuznetsov did not like studying and did not feel any inclination towards any scientific or other activities. Already in the 7th grade, he left the gymnasium and went to the village.

Here he very soon acquired the fame of a Hercules and a remarkable marksman; and indeed, he possessed incredible strength, and legends were made about his shooting skills. The darling of the family, Nikolay Dmitrievich did not want to think about anything. Hunting was his favorite pastime.

After the death of his father, his mother decided that she needed to place her son somewhere and, in general, do something with him. Having noticed his talent for painting, which distinguished the whole family, Nikolai Dmitrievich’s mother, under some pretext, took him to Odessa to the artist Malman, who was considered a friend of the Kuznetsov family. Malman was one of the best teachers at the Odessa Drawing School, and it was from him that Kuznetsov began to study painting.

The teacher captivated the young Nikolai Dmitrievich with his stories about outstanding artists. Kuznetsov showed excellent talent, but was still far from the idea of ​​devoting himself completely to art. Mature years approached, it was necessary, due to social demands, to become something – and Nikolai Dmitrievich decided, like all the darlings of rich parents, to go to St. Petersburg and join the guard. The commander of the guard lancers, Baron Essen, was ill. Kuznetsov came to him, but he was not accepted, and the wandering youth, instead of joining the guard, suddenly entered the Academy of Arts.

Kuznetsov showed remarkable abilities right from the start at the Academy. Nikolai Dmitrievich studied with Professor Chistyakov. Nikolai Dmitrievich’s first paintings appeared at the ninth traveling exhibition in 1881 and immediately attracted the attention of both the public and critics. They talked about him everywhere, everyone was interested in his works, and not a single traveling exhibition was complete without his paintings and portraits. For two years he was a professor and head of the battle painting workshop at the Academy of Arts.

Kuznetsov traveled a lot. Kuznetsov, according to his own words, learned something from Repin, something in Paris from Pokhitonov, and finally, in Odessa from the excellent technician and artist, a student of the Dusseldorf Academy, Razmaritsyn, and all this as if by the way; everything was given to him at once, and he took everything as if in full size and with all his strength.

In the 1880s and 1890s, he was best known as a portraitist. The artist’s posed for his relatives and people he knew well.

A venerable artist, a recognized authority on art matters, Kuznetsov enjoyed universal respect and sympathy.

Kuznetsov was friends with Vasnetsov, Repin, Polenov and Kuindzhi. Repin painted several portraits of Kuznetsov and used him for his painting “The Zaporozhian Cossacks”. Vasnetsov painted from him for his paintings of Stone Age heroes.

In 1890, N.D. Kuznetsov settled in the village, and three years later moved back to Odessa.

Nikolay Dmitrievich Kuznetsov is one of the founding fathers of the Association of South Russian Artists, a participant in world exhibitions and Paris salons, the owner of an estate, a magnificent collection of paintings and a Knight of the Legion of Honor…

In 1920, Kuznetsov went abroad. He spent the last years of his life in exile in Yugoslavia, where he continued to paint, mainly painting portraits to order. N.D. Kuznetsov died in the city of Sarajevo (1929), which was then part of the Serbian state.