Maria Vasilievna Yakunchikova, in marriage Weber, was a Russian artist born on January 19, 1870, in Wiesbaden, Germany, where her family was on vacation. Her father, Vasily Ivanovich Yakunchikov, was a well-known entrepreneur and patron, while her mother, Zinaida Nikolaevna, came from the Mamontov family.

From an early age, Maria was passionate about drawing, and her father invited artist N. A. Martynov to teach her and other children. In 1885, following the example of her sister Natalia, Maria became a free listener at the Moscow School of Painting, Sculpture, and Architecture. She also participated in drawing evenings organized by V. D. Polenov and his sister in Moscow. During this time, she created sketches on themes from Russian history of the era of Alexei Mikhailovich, such as "The Tsar Visits the Prisoners" and "The Tsar in the Chapel."

In the fall of 1889, Maria entered the Julian Academy in Paris, where she studied for four years. Living in Paris, she spent summers in Russia, working at her father's estates, with the Mamontovs in Abramtsevo and in the vicinity of Zvenigorod. In Abramtsevo, she participated in the work of the ceramics workshop, and her panel "Silence" adorned the entrance gates of the "Abramtsevo" factory in Butyrki.

In 1896, Maria married Leon Weber-Bauler, a student at the medical faculty of the Sorbonne, who was Russian by passport but spent most of his life abroad and later obtained French citizenship. In 1898, they had a son, Stepan.

Maria actively participated in organizing the Arts and Crafts section of the Russian pavilion at the 1900 World Exhibition in Paris. That same year, her two-year-old son was diagnosed with finger tuberculosis. Although her son was saved, Maria's health suffered greatly due to the stress, and the birth of her second son in April 1901 finally undermined her strength. The family moved first to Chamonix and then to Switzerland, where a house was purchased in Chen-Bourg.

Maria Vasilievna Yakunchikova passed away on December 14, 1902, from aggravated tuberculosis. Many of her works are in private collections of the Weber family heirs.