Anatoly Krynsky was born in Kharkov, Ukraine and was tutored by Vasily Yermilov, the Russian Constructivist, and Alexander Arkhipenko at the Kharkov Institute of Fine Arts. After moving to Moscow, Krynsky worked as an illustrator for the Association for Print and News (APN) and "Molodaya Gvardiya" publishing house. Krynsky was selected to design the Russian pavilions for the World Exhibition EXPO '70 in Japan and EXPO '74 in Washington. Living a "semi-legal" existence, a customary reality for many Soviet artists of the time, helped shape Krynsky's artistic character. His exhibitions were suppressed and his works confiscated by the KGB, but eventually Krynsky became a key figure in the non-conformist movement in Russia working with the likes of Boris Shteiberg, Vasily Sitnikov, Valery Vorobiev, Anatoly Zverev, Ilya Kabakov, and poet Mikhail Grobman.