Kulikov Selfportrait 1939 - Public domain portrait painting

He was born to a peasant family that had recently moved to Murom from a rural village. His father was a roofer and house painter who headed a small cooperative that built and repaired numerous structures there. In 1893, a local teacher became impressed with his drawing skills an introduced him to Alexander Morozov, who spent the summers painting in Murom. Morozov was impressed as well and advised his parents to enroll him in the drawing school at the Imperial Society for the Encouragement of the Arts.