During the Maui Open Studios Event, artists and artisans open up their studios and exhibition spaces to the public.

KAHULUI – Next month, the Maui Open Studios Event will kick off its tenth year of connecting art lovers and collectors with artists around the island.

MOS is a well-attended and popular event for art enthusiasts, collectors and those seeking creative inspiration – both locals and tourists alike. Some visitors now plan their trips to Maui around the event.

The 2020 Maui Open Studios Event is scheduled for all four weekends in February: South Maui, Feb. 8 and 9; West, North, Central and East Maui, Feb. 15 and 16; and Upcountry, Feb. 22 and 23.

The Opening Celebration/Preview Exhibition will be held on Saturday, Feb. 1, from 5 to 8 p.m. in the Pa’ina Culinary Arts Center at the University of Hawaii Maui College.

The event follows a model that has been very successful on the Mainland for decades: artists and artisans open up their studios and exhibition spaces to show and sell their work to the public, as well as “talk story,” connect and inspire visitors through one-on-one interactions and, in some cases, live demonstrations. The entire event is free to the public.

Meet artists and preview their work at the Opening Celebration/Preview Exhibition on Saturday, Feb. 1, from 5 to 8 p.m. at the University of Hawaii Maui College’s Pa’ina Culinary Arts Center.

The mission of MOS is to connect the art community directly with art-lovers on Maui.

Since its inception, the event has featured over 80 artists every year and generated over 8,000 individual studio visits by art collectors and enthusiasts each year.

Around $100,000 in art sales made directly between art-collectors and artists have been generated by the event each year since its creation.

MOS offers a great way for art-loving locals and tourists to experience unique opportunities to connect with both local Maui artists and visiting artists island-wide.

For the 2020 event, there are over 100 participating artists – including over 30 artists new to the event – working in various mediums, including ceramics, photography, mixed media, glass, wood, fiber, drawing, painting and more.

Join many of the artists at the Opening Celebration/Preview Exhibition, where you can enjoy complimentary wine and no-host food options, listen to live music, preview a few pieces of the artists’ work, connect with the artists and pick up copies of the MOS Guidebook, which contains an artist directory and maps to the different studios and exhibition spaces around the island.

Guidebooks are also available in January and throughout the duration of the event at various locations around the island, which are listed on MauiOpenStudios.com.

Visitors then design their own self-guided tours for each weekend of the month, either by referring to their printed guidebook or the online artist directories at MauiOpenStudios.com, which also includes a comprehensive Google map for easy use with GPS.

Hours for the weekend shows are 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.

For more information about the event, visit MauiOpenStudios.com.