EP #20: Kathleen Giles — Seeing What Matters, Values & Storytelling in Watercolor
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In this thoughtful and deeply grounded episode of the Wet On Wet Podcast, host Sunil Kalbandi sits down with Kathleen Giles, a highly respected American watercolorist and educator known for her luminous realism, strong value structure, and deeply narrative approach to painting.
Kathleen’s artistic journey is both inspiring and unconventional. An art school dropout who married young and raised three sons while navigating financial hardship, she built her career steadily through persistence, observation, rejection, experimentation, and disciplined practice. What began as local success exhibiting canal scenes in Western New York gradually evolved into national recognition, invitations to teach across the United States, and judging major watercolor exhibitions.
This episode explores not just technique — but artistic maturity.
Kathleen speaks openly about originality, storytelling, material choices, rejection, discipline, and the mindset required to sustain a long creative life in watercolor.
Painting Your Own Life
One of the central themes of this conversation is the transition from imitation to authenticity.
Like many artists, Kathleen began by painting what inspired her in others’ work. Over time, she realized that true growth happens when artists stop copying what they admire and begin painting what is personally meaningful.
Her ongoing “Life Is” series reflects this shift — paintings rooted not just in scenes, but in ideas, symbolism, and lived experience.
“You have to paint your own life.”
Originality, she explains, is not forced. It emerges from clarity, self-awareness, and confidence developed over years of practice.
Seeing Before Painting
Kathleen does not begin a painting until she can clearly visualize it.
Visualization, imagination, and planning are central to her process. Whether through careful cropping of reference images or adjusting compositions digitally, she believes strong paintings begin long before the brush touches the paper.
“I don’t start painting until I know what I want it to look like.”
This discipline eliminates guesswork and increases the likelihood of successful execution.
Value Structure: The Backbone of Strong Paintings
A major portion of the discussion centers on value control.
Kathleen emphasizes that successful paintings require:
- Light
- Middle tones
- Strong darks
Many artists, she explains, hesitate to commit to strong dark values. They place a dark, panic when it feels too bold, and remove it — flattening the painting in the process.
Her advice is clear:
Put the dark in.
Then build the middle values to stand up to it.
This approach creates structure, depth, and visual strength.
For Kathleen, value matters more than color.
Composition & Focus
When judging a painting or planning her own work, Kathleen asks a simple question:
What is this about?
If a painting is about an expression, then unnecessary background details should be eliminated. If it is about atmosphere and space, then scale and framing must support that narrative.
Clarity of intent determines compositional decisions.
Materials & Studio Discipline
Kathleen shares detailed insights into her materials and workflow:
- Arches 300 lb Cold Press paper
- Professional-grade paints (Daniel Smith, Winsor & Newton, QoR)
- Staining pigments for layered glazing
- Custom-mixed blacks instead of tube black
- Large wash brushes and filbert brushes for soft transitions
- Digital projector for drawing accuracy
- Photoshop Elements for composition planning
She discusses the importance of understanding pigment behavior — staining vs non-staining, transparency vs opacity, and granulation effects.
Rather than relying on tube blacks or premixed grays, she prefers mixing her own neutrals to maintain chromatic unity throughout a painting.
She also speaks candidly about using tools such as white paint and projection — emphasizing honesty over dogma. For her, tools are neutral; clarity and execution matter more than rigid rules.
Learning Through Rejection & Persistence
Kathleen’s career includes numerous rejections before recognition.
Entering national competitions became a deliberate strategy to build credibility and push herself artistically. Over time, persistence paid off.
Her story reflects resilience — and a belief that consistent effort eventually compounds.
“You can’t be afraid to ruin a painting.”
“Just paint. Paint a lot.”
Practice, observation, and critique remain foundational to growth.
Teaching as Mastery
Having taught for decades, Kathleen believes teaching forces artists to articulate and clarify their understanding.
Explaining value, composition, and material behavior to students strengthens one’s own command of those principles.
She encourages artists to seek honest critique, observe great work daily, and continuously train their eye.
Episode Themes
- Moving from imitation to originality
- Narrative realism in watercolor
- Visualization before execution
- Value hierarchy and tonal control
- Mixing blacks and chromatic neutrals
- Light-to-dark painting workflow
- Material discipline and pigment knowledge
- Career growth through rejection
- Teaching as a tool for mastery
About the Guest
Kathleen Giles is an American watercolor artist and educator based in Western New York. Her work is recognized for its luminous realism, emotional storytelling, and dramatic value contrasts. She has earned awards in major national exhibitions and is a respected instructor and judge within the watercolor community.
Website: https://www.kgilesstudio.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kathleen_giles/
About the Host
Sunil Kalbandi is a watercolor artist and host of the Wet On Wet Podcast, where he interviews international artists to explore technique, mindset, and artistic philosophy in depth.
Website: https://kalbandi.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sunilkalbandi/
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