Franz Von Liszt. 1904

This photograph of Franz Von Liszt was taken by Nicola Perscheid, sometime around 1904. You can almost smell the darkroom chemicals, can't you? I wonder what it was like to be Perscheid, wrestling with light and shadow. You can see how he toys with the tonality. How did he get Liszt to sit still? Was the composer cooperative, or was he a diva? The image itself is all about control, the way Liszt is holding that cigar, for example, it speaks of wealth and accomplishment. But the soft focus gives it a dream-like quality, as if Liszt is fading into history. That ghost-like inscription in the upper-right corner, “Franz v. Liszt, 1904” makes me think about how we try to capture and preserve the past. I wonder how he felt being photographed. I suppose there is a universal desire to leave one's mark on the world.