People's Artist of Russia, the author of illustrations in children's books. Known not only in Russia. Tales from his illustrations were published in Japan, Germany, Korea, and other countries. Nearly three hundred works illustrated by a famous artist.
He was born in Ryazan, July 10, 1937. Years of war held in the village in Ryazan. In 1946, when he returned from the front of his father, the family moved to Moscow.
From 1948 to 1955 he studied at the Moscow Art School (MSKHSH). In 1961 he graduated from the Moscow State Art Institute. VI Surikov (MGAHI).
In school and college drew cartoons, and even your future is presented as a work in the "fun" book. Back in the institute years by Nikolai Ustinov three times were printed in "Crocodile", and graduate work was "The Bug" VV Mayakovsky.
Ustinov soon realized that caricature - not his job, and did the "lyrical book": illustrated books about the countryside, nature and animals. Several years Ustinov draw animals at the zoo, and in 1967, his family bought a village house near Pereslavl-Zalessky. The time spent there, it was a very fruitful and important for an artist. There are born great works of the classics (IS Turgenev and Leo Tolstoy), the story of MM Prishvin and GY Snegirev and IS Sokolov-Mikitov, to poems about nature, to Russian tales.
Taken from here:
http://krasnaya-zastava.ru/?p=1137