Aleksandr Yakovlev was born in Saint Petersburg and educated there at the Imperial Academy of Fine Arts. He actively participated in the Russian avant-garde movement, but left Russia in 1917, drawn to the terrain, culture, and above all, the people of Africa and Asia. An expert draftsman, Yakovlev served as the official artist for the Citröen Motor Company on its sponsored motorized vehicle treks across Africa (1924-1925) and Asia (1931-1932). Recent research found the preferred spelling of the artist's name is Aleksandr Yakovlev.