Marjan Kravos was born in Trieste on May 6, 1948. A painter and set designer from Trieste, he is among the most prominent theater creators who have shaped the image, status, and successes of the Slovene Permanent Theatre in Trieste. After graduating from a science-oriented high school, where he was taught by Avgust Černigoj, he enrolled at the Academy of Fine Arts in Ljubljana.

He graduated in 1975 and continued his postgraduate studies in graphic art specialization under professors R. Debenjak, M. Pogačnik, and B. Borčič. He completed his postgraduate studies in 1975 and returned to Trieste. For five years, he taught art history at a classical high school and worked exclusively with intaglio printing. He printed at the Venetian studio of master E. Vedova while also collaborating as a set designer with various theaters. In 1980, he became the technical director of the Slovene Permanent Theatre in Trieste, a position he held for twenty-six years.