Visiting Lahaina 'most every year before moving to Maui allowed me to see the great posters the town created to showcase their historical spot in Hawaii. As soon as I was part of the Lahaina community of artists, I answered the call for artists to compete to win and be part of Lahaina history. My collectors encouraged me to participate as well, loving my work and wanted to see me succeed. $2500 top prize was exciting to think about and a thousand limited edition copies distributed! I gathered my courage and ideas, then nature supplied the imagery-- here is the progression of the one chosen as a Finalist in the contest!

The beach sunset was vivid and I had to work fast to capture the setting sun colors and the general layout for the painting. Three more sessions on location gave me the final form and coloration and then studio work allowed me to add the detail of the main palm tree and the canoes' details over the next few weeks. I hoped it would be the winner! Fingers crossed.

The final painting is below in 16 x 20 inches.

"Lahaina Canoe Beach, 2016"