Illustrator, printmaker, and painter Beniamin Matveevich Basov (Moiseevich; Matveyevich) was born in Mstislaval, Belarus, in 1913. He graduated from the Vitebsk Art and Graphic Technical School in 1933, and attended the Moscow Art Institute between 1938 and 1948, studying under Sergei Vasilyevich Gerasimov. His attendance there was interrupted by the second World War, during which time he worked as a set designer for the Russian Theater of Opera and Ballet. Of note is his design for the opera “The Battle of the Ice” by Alexander Nevsky.

Basov is best known for his illustrated work for classic Russian literature. Collaborations with the publishing houses Belgosizdat and Goslitizadt, as well as the Publishing House of Literature in foreign Languages, brought about a lengthy and well respected oeuvre.  Among the list is I.S. Turgenev’s "On the eve" (1949, originals in the State Tretyakov Gallery), "Rudin" (1952); "White Nights" by F.M. Dostoevsky; "Stories" by A.P. Chekhov (1956, originals in the State Tretyakov Gallery); "The Fate of Man" by Sholokhov (1961 - 1962); "They fought for their homeland" by Sholokhov; "Alive and the Dead" by K.M. Simonov, as well as works by L.N. Tolstoy, N.A. Nekrasov and A.M. Gorky. Basov later taught at the Moscow Polytechnic Institute.

Works by Basov are included in the State Tretyakov Gallery, the State Museum of Fine Arts. A.S. Pushkin, the State Literary Museum, the museum of A.M. Gorky in Moscow, in a number of regional museums, as well as in private collections both in Russia and abroad.
He died in 2001 in Moscow.