Born into a poor family of merchant Kalyazin. In the early 1820s lived "workers" from local painter, studied "images", worked with a team of Kalyazin itinerant painters. In early 1823, painted with gang iconostasis in the monastery Terenskom vyshnevolotsk County Tver province, where he first met A. Venetsianov. In April 1824, wrote the iconostasis in the estate of A. P. Putyatin, neighbor Venetsianov, in may, worked in Terebinsk monastery, where he again met Venetsianov. At the request of Venetsianov was adopted under the auspices of the Society for the encouragement of artists. In the summer of 1825, arrived in St. Petersburg, lived in the house Venetsianov and became one of the first disciples. In July of the same year Krylov received permission to attend drawing classes at the Academy of fine arts. Wrote "a View of the front garden to the apartment Venetsianov", purchased by the Empress Elizabeth Alekseyevna. In the years 1825-1827 executed a number of genre compositions, presented on the exhibitions of the Society of encouragement of artists. One of the works - "Boy with a candle in hands" - acquired p. P. Svinyin for the "Russian Museum". In 1827 for his film "Winter" and portraits from life, exhibited in the Academy of fine arts, wings was awarded a small gold medal among the awards of the Society for the encouragement of artists. In 1830 was recognized as "designated" in academics and received the program for the title of academician "to write the natural magnitude generational portrait of Martos". On execution of the program information is not available.
Died 28 June (10 July) 1831 during a cholera epidemic.
Nikifora Stepanovich Krylov was born in the town of Kalyazin on the Volga, and worked in his youth in the farm of itinerant painters, while painting one of the churches in Tver province spotted a Russian painter and teacher of young talents of A. G. Venetsianov: "I Noticed, among the painters-workers for one, which wrote bolder and the other was younger than the others." For several years Venetsianov sought to persuade the plain-hand on the painting of churches and Scripture portraits N. Krylov to move to study in Petersburg (was a young painter and "serious" composition in one of the monasteries of the Tver province — "the healing of the paralytic hands and feet of the landowner Kuminova, punished with dumbness for daring iazykoznanie").
With the beginning of autumn, 1825 N. The wings of the "masters" came to the disciples, working under the guidance of Venetsianov and situated nature class Academy of arts. In 1827 he received 2 gold medal from the society for landscape "Winter". In addition to numerous, small in size and marching on the sale of works the artist paints an interesting canvas "Russian winter" in which he tried to solve the problem of the image of snow in the landscape. (Remember K. P. Briullov, who two decades later, claimed that all can be visualized as a landscape, but snow: "I write the winter, and all will be spilled milk." This is to ensure that the artists wrote while almost one summer landscapes, besides frequently Italian.)
In the last years of life N. With. Krylov has achieved great success in portraiture. "He focused on portraiture and this is different," the opinion of A. G. Venetsianov. A painter died from cholera quite young, although considerable talent and great diligence was scheduled ahead of lasting recognition.