Mykola Kornylovych Pymonenko was born 9 March 1862 in the village of Priorka [uk] on the outskirts of Kyiv.

After working as his father's assistant, Pymonenko went on to study icon painting at the Kyiv Pechersk Lavra.

[5][6] In 1897, Pymonenko was involved in decorating Kyiv's St Volodymyr's Cathedral and was awarded the Order of Saint Anne for his work there.

A street was named after him in 1959, and, in 1997 a museum devoted to him was opened in Malyutyanka [uk], a village he visited regularly each year.

[8][9] Pymonenko fell out of favour with the Peredvizhniki when one of his paintings, Going Home, was used (apparently without his permission) by the Shustov Vodka Company to promote their spotykach (a type of horilka).

Mykola Golubed waved: “It is clear from those words that Pymonenko was wronged as a citizen, but he was praised as an artist by the critics.