Ivan Bahrianyi was born in the village of Kuzemyn, Okhtyrskyi Raion, Sumy Oblast, in eastern Ukraine, in the family of a bricklayer. His education was not consistent, due to the difficulty of life during First World War, the revolution and the post-war chaos in education. He started at age of 6 in church-parochial school. Later Bahrianyi finished higher elementary school in Okhtyrka. Having completed his secondary education, in 1920 he entered the locksmith school, then he got admitted to an artistic school.