Mike Carroll from Lanai is one of 25 artists participating in the eighth annual Maui Plein Air Painting Invitational. Events begin this Saturday with the “Kick Off Paint Out” at D.T. Fleming Beach at Kapalua.

LAHAINA – Maui’s premier plein air painting event, the Maui Plein Air Painting Invitational, begins Saturday, Feb. 16, and will run through Feb. 24.

Now in its eighth year, 25 of the finest plein air painters from Hawaii and the U.S. Mainland will spend a week racing the light to capture the island on canvas. Events will be held in Kapalua and Lahaina.

The invitational begins with a “Kick Off Paint Out” at D.T. Fleming Beach at Kapalua on Saturday from noon to 3 p.m. Artists’ freshly painted works of art will be available for sale at 4 p.m. at Village Galleries in The Ritz-Carlton, Kapalua and throughout the week as artists capture works honoring Maui and its culture.

On Tuesday, Feb. 19, at 7 p.m., Jean Stern, executive director of The Irvine Museum in California, will conduct a lecture entitled “Painting En Plein Air” at the Pioneer Inn in Lahaina. An Artists Mini-Paintings Silent Auction is also slated.

The next day, Wednesday, Feb. 20, at 4 p.m., artists will gather at Kamehameha Iki Park next to 505 Front Street in Lahaina for the “Pacific’O Sunset Paint Out.”

On Friday, Feb. 22, from 9 to 11 a.m., the popular Pioneer Inn Lahaina Harbor Quick Draw will see artists racing to complete a painting in just two hours from start to finish. That evening from 6 to 9 p.m., the Maui No Ka `Oi Magazine Gala Reception will feature three of the best paintings from each artist plus their Quick Draw painting unveiled and available for purchase at The Village Gallery in Lahaina.

On Saturday, Feb. 23, from 9 to 11 a.m., the public will have one last opportunity to meet the artists, with paintings available for sale at The Village Gallery in Lahaina. The last opportunity for the public to purchase paintings will be Sunday, Feb. 24, from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.

For more information, visit www.MauiPleinAirPainting.org or call (808) 298-9119. All events are free and open to the public.