Jayapala Panicker is a leading personality in the world of the 20th century Indian art.

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He joined the Madras School of Fine Arts in the 1960s before renouncing the academic style. Panicker is revolutionizing Indian artistic creation by managing to establish a dialogue between indigenous contexts, modern techniques and international influences. His research on local calligraphy and metaphysical abstraction formed the basis of his art and gave birth to his famous series Words and Symbols.

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In 1966, Panicker founded Cholamandal, an artists' village in the heart of the suburbs of Madras, which is now world-renowned and is one of the major attractions of the region.