We recently connected with Jeanne Will Victoria ONÉLIEN and have shared our conversation below.
Jeanne Will Victoria , appreciate you joining us today. We’d love to hear about when you first realized that you wanted to pursue a creative path professionally.
From an early age, I’ve always been drawn to the colors and shapes around me. I’ve always had this ability since kindergarten. And from the age of 8, I expressed everything I wanted to say in words through drawing. It was my way of communicating with the outside world.
Around the age of 10, I went to visit a painter’s studio in my dad’s hometown of Leogane, where I was able to observe his painting technique. A keen observer, I arrived in Port-au-Prince and asked my parents for some painting materials. From the first attempt, I produced a successful painting of a landscape that brought together my memories of my stay in Leogane.
From that day on, I realized that I had talent and perhaps a gift for art.
However, it wasn’t until I finished high school that I decided to make art professionally. My parents always told me to do what I love and what makes me happy. And the only thing that did and still does make me happy in life is making art.
In 2017, Haiti had begun to have social-political problems that were affecting the education system, so after my studies I couldn’t see myself pursuing traditional career studies like medicine, or being a lawyer, so I chose to perfect my art by taking courses at “Le Centre d’art Haïti” in Painting and Photography in order to make it my profession. Then I took street art seminars to become a street artist. From there, I developed my own style that reflects my personality. Thanks to my originality and authenticity, people started paying me and calling on my services as a visual artist.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.
I am Jeanne Will Victoria Onélien, commonly known as V!cky O — visual artist, storyteller, and daughter of Port-au-Prince.
Born on September 27, 1997, completing my classical studies at Institution Sacré-Coeur, my journey began in the colorful chaos of Haiti, where I first picked up a pencil around the age of eight and never let go. From drawing and painting to fashion design, every step of my early life was a search for new ways to speak through images when words fell short.
After high school, my passion for creation led me to fashion design. Yet my artistic journey kept expanding, moving beyond traditional frameworks. In 2020, I found new wings through graffiti. In a country where walls often speak louder than voices, I made them my canvas — a bold, unconventional form still rare for women in Haiti. Through platforms like “Street Art au Feminin” and events such as “Festi Graffiti”, I became one of the first Haitian women to engage professionally in graffiti, using public spaces to tell stories of resilience, identity, and hope.
Always drawn to crossing artistic boundaries, I founded “Graffiti Wall Shooting” in 2020 — an original concept combining graffiti art and photography to create immersive, living artworks. Two editions have been completed so far, reinforcing the dialogue between the body, the wall, and the spirit of the city.
In 2021, I took photography classes at “ le centre d’art to become a professional photographer. Through my lens, I captured stories, the beauty of Haiti, cultural events and daily life shots of people in Haiti. And worked with multiple ONGs and international medias to share stories and create an impact to change the lives of the most vulnerable.
My exploration of new mediums has led me to digital painting and artistic image composition, an evolving practice where technology meets imagination. I believe that art has no frontiers — it is the artist’s spirit that defines its limits. Every day, I commit to pushing my creative boundaries and exploring new territories of expression.
My dedication to growth and exchange has taken me beyond Haiti’s borders. I participated in the “Haiti–Cuba Academic Residency in Photography”, and more recently, in a Street art / art residency program in Paris in September 2024 and where participated at Cergy Soit ! Art Festival — both experiences fueling my practice with global perspectives and new techniques.
Beyond my personal creations, I have contributed artistically to major cultural and commercial projects, including leading the creative direction for the “Prestige (national beer brand)”, a Heineken product campaign, and the PAPJAZZ Haiti 2025 Festival — shaping stories that move across stages, screens, and hearts.
Committed to more than just creation, I regularly contribute my voice and work to feminist movements and cultural initiatives like Organisation feminist “Marijan” and “Tisaksuk”, helping to amplify narratives that are often left unheard.
Through my work, I seek not only to create, but to connect — building bridges between tradition and modernity, personal identity and collective memory, local roots and global visions. As a visual artist, I create strong and authentic brand awareness and identity for my clients.
“Where words fail, my colors speak.”
Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?
Honestly, I started out without any specific strategy. I posted my works, my sketches, sometimes photos of walls I found beautiful or damaged, moments in life. But what really drew people in, I think, was that I wasn’t trying to be ‘beautiful’ or ‘perfect’ – I was trying to be real. Showing my process, my failures, my artistic coups de cœur and everyday life in Haiti was already telling a story. I think that’s what attracted my community and made it grow. People felt connected not only to my art, but also to the person I am.
Step by Step, I realized that consistency mattered: not in color or style alone, but in intention. Your artistic universe has to breathe in everything you share.
My advice to those just starting out: don’t try to please everyone. Be anchored in who you are, even if it takes time at first, but over time you’ll see your community grow. Show what you love, what you create, what amazes or upsets you. And above all: engage with sincerity. Respond to people. Make connections. “Algorithms are no substitute for authenticity.
A little backstory : I lost my Instagram account in 2021. I thought all was lost, yet the bond I had with my community was so strong and real that they followed me on my new adventure. And less than two years later, I already had twice as many followers as my first account.
“Never give up”
What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?
For me, the greatest gift of being an artist is being able to build bridges between the visible and invisible worlds. My art allows me to speak without always using words: I can convey an emotion, a memory, an identity, a wound or a light. When someone looks at one of my works and tells me that he or she recognizes him or herself in it, that he or she finds in it a piece of Haiti, or just a familiar feeling… that’s when I feel useful. It allows me to connect Haiti with other world cultures, projecting a positive image in the midst of dark times.
I also find a lot of meaning in representing what is often erased or misunderstood – be it Vodou symbols, forgotten faces, or fragments of culture that I want to bring back into the present. Being an artist, for me, is about honoring heritage while dreaming of the future.”
Contact Info:
- Website: https://victoria-onelien.pixels.com/?fbclid=PAZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAaffUR8x5Se5qMbgeG8zIL27WmXJCSevM-76xaorzpVeXIl1E1xpVEzyR3CqtA_aem_6f3LYnbvhJK56u5OHPP4Yg
- Instagram: @vickyyonelien
- Linkedin: Jeanne will victoria Onélien
- Twitter: @vickyyonelien
- Other: [email protected]
Image Credits
All the images have been created by me.