The annual membership dues, qualifies an artist as an associate member and entitles one to: 1) attend meetings and vote 2) be eligible for workshop attendance at a membership price 3) inclusion in the website (at nominal fee) 4) exhibit in membership shows (non-juried) 5) enter the TnWS Biennial Exhibitions and 6) receive all TnWS publications; newsletters (2 large issues/yr) Spring & Fall, president’s Medium (2 – 3/yr), and The Biennial Exhibition full-color Catalog. TnWS schedules general meetings for the membership that include socials, field trips, business sessions, lecture/presentations, demonstrations, and/or programs focused in water media.

Application for Associate membership in TnWS may be made by artists who are 18 years or older and who reside in the state of Tennessee. Where cities border the state-line, artists who work or reside within the greater metropolitan area, whether in Tennessee or not will be eligible for membership. Acceptance into a TnWS Juried Biennial Exhibition qualifies one automatically as an “Active Member”. Following acceptance in any three Juried TWS Biennial Exhibitions, an active member becomes an “Artist/Signature Member.” Patron membership is acquired by making yearly contributions that indicate an abiding interest in the purposes and aims of the Tennessee Watercolor Society. Patron members need not be watercolor painters. Patron members may attend meetings and receive the newsletter, but are not eligible to vote or hold office. The membership year runs annually, January through December and dues are payable in January each year.

No person on the basis of race, color, national origin, disability, age, religion or sex shall be excluded from participation in or otherwise be subjected to discrimination of services, programs, and employment provided by the Tennessee Watercolor Society.

A Brief History

The Tennessee Watercolor Society became an organization in 1971 after two years of meetings and exploratory letters. The name “Tennessee Watercolorists” was originally given to the group but was abandoned later because of the trend across the country to call such an organization a “Society”.

When first exploring the possibility of a state organization, Chattanooga Artist, Mary Britten Lynch began by contacting Budd Bishop, director of the Hunter Museum in Chattanooga, George Cress, chairman of the UTC Art Dept. and Kermit “Buck” Ewing, Art Department head at UT Knoxville. All were very supportive of a state organization and provided lists of artists across the state.

The first meeting held in Nashville at the University Club, included Mary Britten Lynch, Chairman, Anton Weiss, Don Cannichael, Louise LeQuire, Mildred Cantrell, Gordon Holl and Norman Worrell.

Helping the organization get off the ground at the very start were Gordon Holl and Norman Worrell of the Tennessee Arts Commission. Jim Franklin, a Chattanooga architect and exhibiting artist, provided expertise in organizing and writing bylaws. Memphis Artist, Jason Williamson accepted the challenge to become the first president, with the support of 26 founding members.

The First Annual Exhibition was held in 1972 at Chattanooga’s Hunter Museum. Ohio artist and author Robert Laessig, AWS, juried the exhibition. It was a great success. Artists and collectors from all over Tennessee attended the opening.

Today we are a Biennial Exhibition organization with a statewide membership of more than 200 members.