Baranov was born in the village of Baranov, near Irkutsk. In 1930-1934 he studied at Irkutsk Secondary Art School. In 1941 Baranov graduated from Moscow State Art Institute. From 1933 he began to take part in art exhibitions. In 1945 Baranov joined the Grekov Studio of Military Painting.

Baranov took part in World War II. He was drafted in June 1941 and fought all the way from the Volga to the Vltava. During the Battle of Stalingrad Baranov was a soldier of the 5^th mine-engineering brigade. He fought at the South-Western Front, Don Front, Steppe Front and finished the war as a soldier of the 2^nd Ukrainian Front.

Baranov was decorated with the Red Star Order, the Medal for Battle Merit, the Medal for the Victory Over Germany in the Great Patriotic War 1941–1945.