Born in Orissa in 1933, Gopal Sanyal earned a diploma in painting from the Department of Fine Arts at the Government College of Art & Craft, Kolkata, in 1957.

He was a founding member of Calcutta Painters, where his works, exploring the distortion and abstract representation of both human figures and tradition, gained wide recognition. Sanyal's art often depicted people in everyday life settings, elevating mundane practices to the same level of importance as godly or transcendent representations.

Sanyal's career is marked by several significant accolades, including the prestigious National Scholarship in painting from the Government of India, which he was awarded three times. His work was also recognised with awards from the All India Society of Fine Arts and Crafts (AIFACS), New Delhi, in both 1971 and 1964. Earlier, he received an award from the Academy of Fine Arts, Calcutta, in 1963. Further testament to his prominence is the 1993 film about him by Debiprasad Ghosh. Gopal Sanyal passed away in 2006.