Baadal Nanjundaswamy () is an Indian painter. An alumnus of Chamarajendra Academy of Visual Arts (CAVA), he is most popular for his street art and 3D paintings. He lives in Bangalore.
Baadal Nanjundaswamy (birth name: Baadal Nanjundaswamy Nanjaiah) was born in 1979 to Narasamma and Nanjaiah in the Kukkarahally area of Mysore district in the Indian state of Karnataka.
He was drawn to painting and literature in school. Even with limited sources of income, he acquired necessary education. To earn the fees for university education, he converted a petty shop bought on borrowed money into a painting workshop and sold his paintings. After graduation, Baadal worked with Ogilvy & Mather in their Bangalore office as a visualizer. He then worked freelance. He worked as an art director for Kannada films, plays, documentaries, short films and did design work for independent projects. U Turn (2016 film), Lucia, Lifeu Ishtene, Prakruthi and Police Quarter are notable works as an art director.
He has several Black and White portraits to his credit, including. Sachin TendulkarâÂÂs portrait in the Students' Activity Center in IIT Bombay. Baadal wrote short stories in Kannada.
He crafted a series of sketches beginning in 2012 using colored gel pens. Forty such sketches drawn during train journeys were displayed at an exhibition titled 'Colors and beyond' in the Suchitra art gallery in 2012. The paintings are âÂÂslice-of-lifeâ scenes as observed by the artist. Another solo exhibition called âÂÂMachine Manushyaâ was held in Sabarang art gallery, Mysore in September 2013. His paintings were part of other collective exhibitions. Besides the paintings, his installations in Kalamandira, Mysore depicted political and cultural themes.
His most popular works are the street art that highlight the disorderly condition of roads in Bangalore and Mysore. Most went viral on social media. His work was appreciated for its satirical thought, quick execution and for influencing civic authorities.