Ivan Bilibin

Ivan Bilibin (1876-1942) was a Russian book illustrator and stage designer. He was born in 1876 in a suburb of St. Petersburg. In 1898 he studied at Anton Azbe Art School in Munich, then under Ilya Repin in St. Petersburg. In 1902-1904 Bilibin traveled in the Russian North, where he became fascinated with old wooden architecture and Russian folklore. Bilibin gained renown in 1899, when he released his illustrations of Russian fairy tales. In 1905-1910 he illustrated Pushkin's fairy tales: The Tale of Tsar Saltan and The Tale of the Golden Cockerel. His later works include stage and costume design for Russian operas and ballets. Bilibin died in 1942 during the Siege of Leningrad.