Born in Agapovka, Russia in 1947, Noi Volkov grew up in the Soviet Union. He graduated from both the Grekov Art College in Odessa and the Muckhina Art College in Leningrad, now known as St. Petersburg. He lived as a non conformist artist in Odessa facing limitations and hardships brought on by the Soviet government up until 1989 when he was finally able to move to the U.S. with his family. Noi currently lives and works in Baltimore, Maryland. He is known for his ceramic sculptures.