Born in Semeniškiai (Lithuania), Jonas Mekas (1922-2019) bought his first Bolex camera on his arrival in New York in 1949 and began to record moments of daily life. He was the village voice columnist for the “Movie Journal”. He set up and was the editor of
Film Culture magazine with his brother
Adolfas Mekas, and founded the Film-Makers' Cooperative and Anthology Film Archives. His work later inspired many artists and film makers, such as Jim Jarmush, Martin Scorsese, who recognised his influence. Mekas's
films and archive material have been exhibited extensively throughout the world: Documenta 11; the Venice Biennale 2005; MoMA PS1, New York; Museum Ludwig, Cologne; Baltic Art Center, Visby; the Metropolitan Museum of Photography, Tokyo, etc.
