Usypenko was born in the village of Vodny, a region of Zaporozhye, in 1917. In 1937 he graduated from Moscow Secondary Art School. In 1940-1941he studied at Kiev Art Institute. In 1938 Usypenko joined the Grekov Studio of Military Painting. In 1938 he became a member of  the Artists Union of the USSR. In 1968 he was given a title of Honoured Artist of the Russian Federation.

Usypenko took part in World War II. He 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. Usypenko was one of the authors of the panorama “The Rout of the Nazi Troops in the Battle of Stalingrad”.

Works of Usypenko F. P.