Biography
painting the momentwhile it's still happening
Randy Leo Frechette Jr., known everywhere as Frenchy, is a New Orleans live painter. He sets up his easel where the music, the crowd, and the game are happening and paints them in real time.
Randy Leo Frechette Jr., known everywhere as Frenchy, is a New Orleans live painter. He sets up his easel where the music, the crowd, and the game are happening and paints them in real time.
Frenchy's paintings are visual records of experiences as they unfold: a set at Tipitina's, a Jazz Fest afternoon, a Super Bowl pregame. Art, music, performance, New Orleans, culture, and memory, all on one canvas.
Most artists paint from memory or a photograph. Frenchy paints the moment itself. On stage, in the crowd, or on the sideline, he builds each canvas alongside the performance, so the finished piece carries the energy of the night it was made.
That approach has put him beside some of the biggest names in music, including Preservation Hall Jazz Band, Trombone Shorty, Widespread Panic, Goose, Dweezil Zappa, The Radiators, and Dumpstaphunk.
Frenchy was the official New Orleans Saints artist from 2001 to 2007. His work has reached national audiences through Super Bowl XLVII and broadcast exposure, and through work associated with Caesars and Harrah's.
Browse his original paintings in the Archive, take one home from the Shop, or book Frenchy to paint your next event. Follow along on Instagram and Facebook.