[1] He was the son of the caretaker at the Imperial Academy of Arts, where he was admitted in 1764 upon a petition by his father, after studying for several years at the garrison school.

[2] Having incurred the displeasure of the authorities at the Academy, when he returned he was put to work as a decorator for the Imperial Theatres until 1786 and was not allowed to continue his academic studies.

In 1800, Tsar Paul I assigned him to create vedute of the streets and architecture in Moscow.

[2] From 1803, he taught at the Academy, but also travelled extensively, visiting Kherson, Mykolaiv, Bakhchysarai, Oryol and other locations in the south which had been visited by Catherine the Great,[1] where he produced plein air sketches and watercolors of the surrounding areas.

In his later years, his fame steadily declined and he died in poverty, leaving a large family behind.