The Kansas Watercolor Society was founded in 1970 for the purpose of encouraging the advancement, appreciation, and creation of watermedia through exhibitions, juried competitions, painting workshops, scholarships, and memorials.

The early Kansas Watercolor Society juried competitions were open only to Kansas artists and included only works in transparent watercolor. Missouri and Oklahoma were added to form the Tri-State competition in 1979, Nebraska was included in 1986, and the addition of Colorado created the 1988 KWS Five-State Exhibition.  1996 included New Mexico and Texas in the first KWS 7-State Exhibition, and Arizona was added in 2003 to form the current region represented in the Kansas Watercolor Society Great 8 Exhibition.

As the competition's regional area broadened, so did the rules on painting media--widening the narrow definition of watercolor to include the use of any aqueous media executed on paper, with the exception of water-based oils.  In addition to the annual juried watercolor competition, KWS also sponsors lectures, workshops and membership Invitational Exhibitions. We hope these events will broaden public understanding and appreciation for the beauty and versatility of watermedia painting and will encourage both well-established and developing artists.

In 2007,  KWS joined the Wichita Center for the Arts, creating a partnership that will ensure the continuance of our organization's mission and the standards of excellence that began in 1970.  The first annual National Exhibition was held in 2009.