In the summer of 1965, Jean-Paul Sartre and Simone de Beauvoir made a visit to Lithuania. Although it lasted only a week, this visit, culminating in an excursion on foot through the dunes of Nida, left an indelible impression on those who met the two intellectuals on this occasion. Through the photographs of the young Antanas Sutkus, who was part of the delegation authorized to accompany the illustrious visitors, the event also came to occupy a significant place in Lithuania’s collective memory.

A milestone in the relations between two countries, a catalyzer of reflections on freedom and cultural identity, this remarkable series of photographs is endowed with a philosophical and political dimension, quite apart from its artistic qualities. In a distinction rarely accorded to this artistic medium, one of Sutkus’ photographs of Sartre would even inspire two sculptures – one of them long exhibited in front of the BnF in Paris, the other planted in the landscape of Nida. This image, however, has always come down to us in truncated form. The original print restores the presence of Simone de Beauvoir at the side of her companion.

Exhibition produced in partnership with the Lithuanian photographers Association, in the framework of the Season of Lithuania in France 2024.