Victor Anicet leaves behind a body of work deeply rooted in Martinique’s memory. At Richès Karayib, we also remember a joyful man, always ready with a joke, devoted to others and to his island. An artist who believed that starting with very little need not stand in the way of reaching your goals.
News of Victor Anicet’s death on 26 October 2026 has touched Martinique and the Caribbean arts community. Born in Le Marigot in 1938, the ceramist, painter and visual artist devoted his career to bringing together art, history and the memories of his island. Source: RCI (in French).
For us, this tribute is also a way of remembering the time we shared with him. We had the opportunity to work with Victor Anicet and to experience the joy that went hand in hand with his desire to pass on his knowledge. There was room for humour, and for genuine attention to others. His commitment to Martinique found expression in his willingness to share what he had learned.
An artistic legacy that reconnects people with their history
As a child, Victor Anicet discovered fragments of Indigenous pottery during archaeological excavations led by Father Pinchon in Le Marigot. This early encounter with traces of the island’s first inhabitants would have a lasting influence on his art.
After studying in Martinique and Paris, he returned to the island in 1967. Art became a way of helping Martiniquans reconnect with their history. With Soleil noir, exhibited outdoors in 1970, he also brought his work directly to the public. Source: LUMA (in French).
In 1984, he helped establish Fwomajé, a group exploring Caribbean aesthetics. His creations include the stained-glass windows of Saint-Pierre Cathedral, made in collaboration with Atelier Simon Marq in Reims. In 2024, the exhibition Opacité & transparence at Fondation Clément highlighted several decades of his work. Source: Fondation Clément (in French).
Victor Anicet and Richès Karayib: sharing knowledge with young people
We saw that commitment to sharing during “Mémoire Vivante – L’art de se transmettre” (Living Memory – The Art of Transmission). Led by Richès Karayib with the support of DAC Martinique and Énergies Nouvelles Antilles-Guyane, the initiative brought together 17 young people aged 18 to 25 in Fort-de-France.
Working with clay, Victor Anicet shared his techniques, his life story and his belief in perseverance. The participants, supported by organisations including Milcem, Milnord and Les Cycas, had the chance to discover ceramics and talk with him directly.
“What interested me was passing things on,” he told us in our earlier report. Read our report on the day with Victor Anicet.
His message reflected a conviction we remember well: what you have at the start does not determine how far you can go. He encouraged people to keep moving forward, learning and persevering. His faith in what each person could achieve was part of what he gave to others.
That encounter lives on in the bilingual booklet Mémoire Vivante – L’art de se transmettre, published by Richès Karayib. It looks back on the day Victor Anicet shared with 17 young Martiniquans and preserves a record of this exchange between generations.
Read the booklet in English and French.
Keeping his knowledge and the memory of our time together alive
We will continue to explore Victor Anicet’s work and tell his story. We will also remember his jokes, his joy and his devotion to Martinique.
Honouring him means creating more opportunities for generations to meet, sharing the work of Caribbean artists and helping their knowledge reach others.
Richès Karayib extends its sincere condolences to his family, his loved ones and his fellow artists.
Thank you, Victor, for your art and for all you shared.
