Born in 1985, Madan Pawar hails from a small village in the interiors of Maharashtra; a place from where very few have ventured out into bigger towns and cities. After getting a Diploma in Art Teaching at the Govt. School of Art, Aurangabad in 2006, Madan moved to Mumbai where he completed his BFA at the prestigious Sir J.J. School of Art in 2010, securing a First Class distinction. He then went on to complete his MFA at JJ School in 2013. The city, with its high rises and overpowering slums, came as a cultural shock to Madan when he first arrived. During his art school days, Madan went on a study excursion to Jodhpur, Rajasthan – and the trip forever changes his life. His first encounter with ‘The Blue City’, as he witnessed the golden rays of the sun on a winter afternoon, remains forever etched in his memory. While he was intrigued by everything he discovered about Jodhpur, it was the sheer geometry of the city, and the cubical constructs in shades of blue, grey and ochre, that left Madan spellbound, and Jodhpur became his forever muse. Using acrylic, Madan mostly paints long shots, aerial views or panoramas of Jodhpur, which allow the viewer to absorb the character of the entire city in one sweep. Tiny windows, an occasional street, or stairways leading up to open terraces, punctuate the endless cubical homes on his canvas. There is an intrinsic simplicity in Madan’s paintings, which are completely devoid of any human presence. Sans frills, his predominantly blue canvases, along with dull pinks, ochres and reds, provide a unique and fresh perspective to a city so steeped in history, culture and architecture. There is a three-dimensional quality in Madan’s paintings, that is reminiscent of works by the 19th century Post-Impressionist French painter Paul Cezanne.

Madan Pawar has won several awards during his career, such as the National Academy Award at Lalit Kala Akademi, New Delhi in 2015, The Bombay Art Society Best Painting Award in 2015 and the Indo-Swiss Students Achievement Award in 2013. His solo exhibition was held at Jehangir Art Gallery in 2018. Madan has also participated in several group shows, including those at Tao Art Gallery (Mumbai), Nehru Centre (Mumbai), Red Earth Art Gallery (Vadodara), Chirari Academy (Pune) and Lalit Kala Akademi (New Delhi). His works can be found in corporate collections in India and abroad, such as The Shipping Corporation of India, MSRDC Mumbai, Maharashtra Times Mumbai, Alan Chun Japan and Uttarayana Art Foundation Vadodara.