Frank Nareau, a 94‑year‑old Korean War veteran and retired newspaper pressman, has spent the latter part of his life translating the energy of the ballpark onto paper. His current exhibition at the Arizona Baseball Museum showcases more than a thousand hand‑drawn portraits of athletes, entertainers and other public figures, each rendered with a pencil and a Coquille board — a textured surface that gives his work a distinctive, tactile quality.
A Lifetime of Ink and Innings
Nareau’s professional journey began in the newsrooms of New Hampshire and later in Mesa, Arizona, where he spent six years as a pressman before moving to a decade-long stint in the same city. The discipline of setting type and operating presses seemed to translate seamlessly into his artistic practice, allowing him to develop a meticulous, almost meditative approach to drawing.
Self‑taught and driven by curiosity, Nareau experimented with a simple pencil and the Coquille board to create over 1,500 original portraits. The process, he says, is less about technical perfection and more about capturing the essence of a person — whether it is the confident grin of a baseball star or the contemplative gaze of a television personality.
The subjects of his work read like a who’s who of American culture. He recounts friendships with Hall of Famers such as Ernie Banks and the charismatic Buck O'Neil, whose stories infused his sketches with anecdotes from the dugout. These personal connections have given his portraits a narrative depth that goes beyond mere likeness.
Baseball remains the thread that ties his memories together. As a child he played sandlot baseball, and even after decades away from the field he remains a devoted fan of the Arizona Diamondbacks. He often remarks that the sport has shifted from a game of instinct and team chemistry to a data‑driven enterprise, a change he both acknowledges and laments.
Beyond the canvas, Nareau offers a simple piece of advice to younger generations: never give up. He believes that perseverance, whether in the newsroom, the studio, or the ballpark, is the quality that sustains an artist through the inevitable ups and downs of a long life.
The exhibition at the Arizona Baseball Museum not only celebrates Nareau’s artistic output but also serves as a reminder of the cultural intersections that shape our public memory. Visitors can wander among the portraits, hear the faint echo of a bygone era, and perhaps leave with a renewed appreciation for the stories that bind sport, art and history together.