James Dewitt

Born in Oakland, CA in 1930, DeWitt’s career has never veered from his two loves, sailing and art. As a five-year-old, he drew pictures of the sailboat his father was building in their backyard and dreamed of someday being her skipper. He studied art for six years at the California College of Arts and Crafts and the Los Angeles Art Center and during his spare time he learned sail making and raced sailboats.

In the busy years since, Jim gained international renown as both an artist and a winning yachtsman, racing in everything from eight-foot El Toro dinghies to blue-water yachts. He won an impressive array of national and international trophies. In 1963 he was the first West Coast skipper to capture the coveted Mallory Cup in the US Men’s Sailing Championship. In 1992, at age 62, he took first place in the International Master’s Regatta, sailed in J-24s in San Francisco, CA. In 2003, coming full circle, he captured the second place trophy in the Master Mariner’s Regatta in San Francisco in a boat designed by his father and patterned after the very same one built in his childhood backyard.

Jim’s passion for painting has kept pace with his love of sailing, and his impressive racing career is reflected in the authority and honesty of his nautical paintings. In addition to shows and exhibitions in San Diego, San Francisco, New York, Waikiki and Newport, Rhode Island, Jim has exhibited in galleries and museums worldwide. His racing paintings are featured in in private and corporate collections and are on permanent display in many yacht clubs, including the prestigious St. Francis Yacht Club in San Francisco, CA.