Mikhail Vasilyevich Nesterov was born on May 19, 1862, in Ufa into an intelligent merchant family with a religious-patriarchal lifestyle. His mother, Maria Mikhailovna, came from an old merchant family of Rostovtsevs from Elets and had a strong character. His father, Vasily Ivanovich Nesterov, was engaged in the trade of manufactured and haberdashery goods but was more interested in history and literature. He supported his son's artistic pursuits, for which Nesterov was grateful to him throughout his life.

Until the age of twelve, Mikhail lived in Ufa, attended gymnasium, and remembered this time fondly. His childhood was filled with love for his home, parents, and nature. As noted by his friend Sergey Durylin, Nesterov had a strong attraction to nature and its beauty from an early age.

He spent his school years at the Orenburg Men's Gymnasium in Ufa. In the autumn of 1874, at his father's insistence, he moved to Moscow to enroll in a technical school but failed the exams and entered the real school of K. P. Voskresensky. In 1877, on Voskresensky's advice, he entered the Moscow School of Painting, Sculpture, and Architecture, where he studied under P. S. Sorokin, I. M. Prjanishnikov, and V. G. Perov. From 1879, Nesterov participated in student exhibitions, creating paintings on everyday themes, such as "In the Snowballs" and "Waiting for the Train."

In 1881, he moved to St. Petersburg and enrolled in the Academy of Arts, but in 1882 he returned to Moscow to study again under Perov. After Perov's death, Nesterov entered the School of Painting, where he studied under A. K. Savrasov and V. E. Makovsky. During this time, he created genre paintings on historical themes and worked on illustrations for magazines and books.

In 1885, for the painting "The Calling of M. F. Romanov to the Throne," he received the title of free artist. By the late 1880s, he became known as an author of paintings on historical themes, reflecting his interest in the pre-Petrine era. In the summer of 1885, he married M. I. Martynovskaya, but in 1886, his wife died during childbirth of their daughter Olga. The image of his wife became an important motif in his subsequent works.

The painting "The Hermit," created in 1888-1889, became Nesterov's first significant work and was acquired by P. M. Tretyakov. With the money received, he went on a trip abroad, visiting Austria, Italy, France, and Germany.

The painting "Vision to the Youth Bartholomew," based on "The Life of St. Sergius," became a sensation at the 18th Traveling Exhibition and was acquired by Tretyakov. Nesterov considered it his best work and dedicated over 50 years of creative work to the image of Sergius of Radonezh.

Since 1889, Nesterov participated in the activities of the Society of Traveling Art Exhibitions. In 1890, he was invited to work on the frescoes of the Vladimir Cathedral in Kyiv. He dedicated over 22 years to church frescoes and icons, studying Byzantine art in Rome, Palermo, Constantinople, and Ravenna.

Nesterov also worked on frescoes in other churches, including the palace church of Alexander Nevsky in Abastumani and the Marfo-Mariinsky Convent in Moscow. His last church work was the fresco of the Spaso-Preobrazhensky Cathedral in Sumy.

His work on church frescoes had a significant impact on Nesterov's creativity, in which the religious theme occupies a special place. In 1895, he created the painting "Under the Bell," which was well received at the Traveling Exhibition and contributed to his election as a member of the Society of Traveling Art Exhibitions.

Nesterov frequently visited Yalta, where he interacted with famous writers and artists. In his memoirs, he noted how many people were drawn to the house where he stayed.