Illinois Watercolor Society – Advancing the education and caliber of watercolor painting throughout Illinois.

History
The Illinois Watercolor Society was established in 1981 with Chuck Strissel as its president. The first exhibition took place at the Redfield Estate at The Grove in Glenview, Illinois in 1982. The chairpersons were Jan Strissel Grosse and Carole Reagan. It is a beautiful cottage on the 123 acres of ecologically diverse prairie preserved and maintained by the Glenview Park District. The Grove was also the home of Robert Kennnicott, a horticulturalist, and is now a designated National Historic Landmark by the U.S. Department of Interior. The cottage had quite a few rooms where they hung the pictures and it was really quite lovely. The Illinois Watercolor Society continued to sponsor demonstrations and got new members every year. Our workshops had well known artists like Zoltan Szabo, Nita Engel and Tom Lynch.

Mission
The mission of the Illinois Watercolor Society is to advance the education and caliber of watercolor painting throughout Illinois.

We are seeking people to join the IWS Board and to continue the with the direction of the IWS moving forward throughout 2026 and beyond.

For any questions please contact director@illinoiswatercolorsociety.org.

IWS Member’s Show