He’s the Rembrandt of the Newport to Ensenada yacht race
Gary Miltimore is captivated by boating. He has crossed the Atlantic Ocean three times and spent days at sea en route to places like Mexico, England and Spain.
And the sailor, who is also an artist, has painted the vessels that have taken him around the world.
Miltimore is now in his fifth year of creating a painting for the Newport Ocean Sailing Assn.’s Newport to Ensenada racing event. Each year’s painting is unveiled at the race’s kickoff celebration. Miltimore’s latest painting will be unveiled at the fifth annual Balboa Village Fest at 1 p.m. on April 19.
Newport to Ensenada, now in its 68th year, is recognized by some as the largest international yacht race in the world. It has attracted hundreds of sailors, including Miltimore, who has participated more times than he can count.
The event gives boats two days to sail from the Balboa Pier to Ensenada, Mexico, a coastal city 60 miles south of Tijuana. Miltimore and his teams have completed the journey in 12 hours.
Before even picking up a paintbrush, Miltimore became fascinated with sailboats. His grandmother lived on Catalina Island, where he, his mother and sister would visit her every summer.
“Those trips introduced me to boats, and something just stuck,” Miltimore said. “I’ve just been a boat addict ever since.”
At 15, he sailed for the first time. After his family bought a summer house in Long Beach, he met a friend his age who took him on a boat in Alamitos Bay. From that day on, Miltimore was hooked on sailing.
During his art sculpture studies at Cal State Long Beach, he shaped figures of people in yoga poses. But being near the water drew him to painting the sailboats.
“I took painting classes along with sculpture,” Miltimore said. “There’s something about the shape of boats, and I was around them all the time in Long Beach.”
The artist delved deeper into the world of sailing by doing artwork on racing boats and yachts in the 1980s. His work included graphics such as the fierce cat face on the boat of late sailing icon Roy Disney.
After spending decades sailing, Miltimore befriended one of the Newport Ocean Sailing Assn.’s commodores, Chuck Iverson. Iverson first asked the artist to work on a painting for the Newport-to-Ensenada festivities five years ago.
“Not only has [Miltimore] done a great deal of sailing, but he’s a well-noted marine artist as well,” Iverson said.
As a tribute to sportsmanship, the annual painting has always featured a small group of boats sailing toward the viewer. Miltimore experimented with different watercolors and seascapes for the race’s fifth painting.
Once the work is revealed at the Balboa Village Fest — its first public exhibition — the sailing association will save it for a future auction. All proceeds from the painting will go to Newport Sea Base and Ensenada children’s organizations.
Miltimore’s inspiration for the painting emerged from his memories in the water. Even through the rush of races and risky voyages, he still finds peace at sea.
“It doesn’t always have to be about racing,” he said. “A lot of times, I’d race but I’d be rooting for the other guy. It’s just about being in the beauty of the water.”
The Newport Ocean Sailing Assn.’s 2015 Newport to Ensenada race will take off at 11 a.m. April 24 at the Balboa Pier.
If You Go
What: Balboa Village Fest
Where: Balboa Fun Zone, 600 E. Bay Ave., Newport Beach
When: 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. April 19 (painting to be unveiled at 1 p.m.)
Cost: Free
Information: balboavillage.com/event/n2e-kickoff-party/