Ray Sipos was born in Detroit in 1939, and moved to Southern California as a teenager where he attended California Polytechnic State College. While working towards his degree in engineering, he could not resist enrolling in painting classes as well. Sipos began his art career in an unusual way, working as a mechanical engineer at Cal Tech's world-renowned Jet Propulsion laboratory in Pasedena, California. After participating in an employee art show and selling out, he opted to pursue a career in the arts instead of engineering. Sipos has had a long and sucessful art career. His works earned him solo exhibitions in top galleries, featured articles in national art magazines such as Southwest Art, and high ranking (top 30 out of 500) in a national competition for marine artists sponsered by the Franklin Mint.