Voiles de Saint Barth - Titouan Lamazou designs the official poster

by Sabina Mollart-Rogerson on 30 Mar 2010 The artist-writer-sailor Titouan Lamazou has come up with the design of the official poster for the first edition of the Voiles de Saint Barth. Emotionally attached to these islands that he discovered in 1976 with Eric Tabarly, Titouan has made a lot of friends there since then, in particular with the Poupon brothers, Luc and Philippe, who have sailed together so many times in these paradise waters, and François Tolède, who is now Director of the organising committee for the Voiles event.

The winner of the first Vendée Globe designed a work fitting in completely with his favourite themes, the eternal woman, the sea and beautiful yachts, all in tones that mix together in perfect harmony the modernity of contemporary yachts and the elegance of the gaff rigs of yesteryear.

'I always enjoy coming back to St. Barts,' explains Titouan. 'Some of my best friends live there. The island has of course changed a lot since I first stopped there back in 1976 with the Poupon brothers and aboard Eric Tabarly’s boats, when I was a crewman. It’s true that St. Barts has been modernised, but these Caribbean islands still work their magic on me.'

Designing the poster for the Voiles de Saint Barth quite naturally inspired the artist. 'I was not given any specifications,' he explained. 'I just tried to find a way of expressing this mixture of futuristic yachts and elegant classic boats, which will be at the heart of this great event in April. I always feel great pleasure when painting beautiful gaff rigs, as these boats from the early twentieth century breathe elegance and style.'

An artist showing no compromise and who says what he thinks, Titouan Lamazou informed those who commissioned this work from the outset what he intended to do: 'There will be women...' The four projects he came up with highlight these sensual and elegant silhouettes, which Titouan Lamazou so wonderfully pays homage to in most of his work.

Titouan Lamazou is due to be present in St. Barts from fifth to 11th April, not as a sailor, but as a friend of St. Barts. His work can currently be admired in the USA, in France and in Japan. Limited edition prints of the official poster for the Voiles de Saint Barth will be on sale in the regatta village.

At the age of seventeen, Titouan Lamazou took off around the world to inspire a log of his travels. He chose a boat as his means of transport by volunteering his services as a crewman on boats that were on stopovers in ports. That is how he met Yvon Fauconnier in 1975 with whom he went aboard Vendredi 13, then Eric Tabarly for whom he served as a crewman for two years on Pen Duick VI.

In 1990, Titouan Lamazou won the first edition of the Vendée Globe, the non-stop single-handed race around the world, at the helm of Ecureuil d'Aquitaine II and completed the voyage in 109 days. This success was followed by a monohull win in the Route du Rhum in the same year. Titouan Lamazou became world ocean racing champion for the period 1986-1990.

Titouan Lamazou has now returned to his vocation as an artist and has published many works.

www.lesvoilesdesaintbarth.com