While in Martinique recently, we picked some small bottles of Neisson Rhum in the handpainted ‘Tatanka’ bottles. We had spoke to the staff there, but our French is not perfect and nor was their English so we left not totally understanding the story behind these little bottles. Something about prisons?
We then saw the Tatanka bottles at other distilleries and set out to understand what the story was.
Searching my US/English version of google was not helping to explain so I was on Google.fr (which is a handy hack when looking for anything Martinique-based (at least for people in the US)) and within minutes I was finding more relevant articles.
For people in the US, there was a wrestler named Tatanka - which was hilarious to think maybe he was hand-painting Martinique rhum bottles.
So far, this is the most clear explainer.
And here is the AI brief of the article 
“Tatanka, a company known for hand-painted bottles of rum featuring Creole life scenes. It began as a small family venture, Rhum & O, illustrating bottles for distilleries, and later transformed into Les Ateliers Tatanka. The company found a unique purpose by establishing workshops in penitentiary centers, providing employment and reintegration support to incarcerated individuals. Despite challenges, including the COVID-19 pandemic, Tatanka has persevered, expanding its partnerships with distilleries and helping painters transition from prison to the company. Ultimately, Tatanka is presented as more than a business; it is a humanitarian project that uses art to offer opportunities for those seeking a new start.”
another quick overview…
(thanks AI bot)
“The decoration of Tatanka bottles involves painting. The bottles are hand-painted, and are described as the work of Martinican artists. The process takes place in various workshops that Tatanka has operated over the years. Initially, around ten painters reproduced the designs in a workshop in Dominica. A significant part of Tatanka’s history involved running painting workshops in penitentiary centers, such as the Ducos penitentiary center in Martinique. Here, workers, including incarcerated individuals, were trained in local crafts, specifically painting on glass. Tatanka also opened workshops in other prison locations, including Baie-Mahault in Guadeloupe and Le Port in Reunion. Over more than two decades, several hundred painters were trained through these initiatives. After leaving the prison environment, Pierre Gué, who led Tatanka, began employing painters released from prison, integrating them into his company. The artwork itself was initially designed by Olivier, and later by the artist Richard Point, whose works were then reproduced by the painters.”