Mikhail Bobyshov was born on November 7, 1885 in the Pogoreloye Village of the Tver Province. In 1900-1907 he studied in Baron Shtiglits’ Central School of Technical Drawing in Petersburg. After graduation he got a foreign grant and visited France, England, Italy, and Spain.
Mikhail Bobyshov participated in exhibitions from 1912.
He made his debut as a stage designer in 1911. At the same time he drew illustrations for magazines. The artist created scenery for the Maly Academic Opera Theatre, the Leningrad Comedy Theater, the State Academic Opera and Ballet Theater, Stanislavsky Opera House and Maly Theatre in Moscow, as well as theaters in Kiev and Sofia. Along with that he made a great number of paintings and graphic art works.
Mikhail Bobyshov taught in Petrograd Technical School (1912-1918), the Leningrad Arts and Crafts technical School (1924-1928), and the Leningrad Institute for Painting, Sculpture and Architecture under the All-Russian Arts Academy. Professor M.P. Bobyshov was the permanent head of Scenery Painting department from 1926. He also taught at the Moscow Art Institute (1943-1947).
He was conferred the title of Meritorious Artist of Russia in 1955, and the People’s Artist of the RF in 1961.
The Arts Academy in Leningrad held M. Bobyshov’s personal exhibition timed to the 50th anniversary of his creative activity in 1967. In spring of 1964 the Leningrad Association of Soviet Artists arranged a retrospective exhibition of his works and presented about 500 works of painting, graphic art and stage design.
Mikhail Bobyshov died on July 7, 1964 in Leningrad.
His works can be seen in the Russian Museum, the Tretyakov Gallery, and lots of museums and private collections in Russia, France, Ukraine, Germany, and other countries.