Resting Under a Tree

Pierre Joseph Valcin was born in 1925, in Port-au-Prince. He attended local schools and upon completion earned a livelihood as a mason and plumber. His half brother, Gerard Valcin, already an established artist, observed Joseph’s natural painting talents and began to tutor him. He introduced Joseph to the Centre d Art in 1957, where he continued to work with him. In the mid 1970 s, Joseph added his family name when signing his works. Joseph is considered one the greatest primitive painters of Haiti. His works have been exhibited in Europe, South America, Canada and the USA. He died in Feb. 2000. Illustrations of his painting can be seen in John Allen Franciscus’ book, “Haiti Voodoo Kingdom To Modern Riviera” and Jonathan Demme’s book, “Island On Fire”. Illustrations of his painting can be seen in Gérald Alexis book, “Peintres Haïtien” , Selden Rodman’s book, “Where Art is Joy”, Mary Jose Nadal’s book, “Haitian Arts”.