Ensikat studied at the College of Art in Berlin. Since 1965 he has worked as a freelance designer. He taught at the College of Art in Hamburg (1995–2002) and his work has been shown in many national as well as international exhibitions. Ensikat has been honoured for his work with numerous awards, among them the Golden Apple in 1973 and 1991. For his illustrations he received the Grand Prix at the Illustration Biennale in Bratislava in 1979 and the Hans Christian Andersen Award in 1996.