Wicked by Mitzi Szereto

Author:Mitzi Szereto
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: Wicked
Publisher: Cleis Press
Published: 2011-12-15T00:00:00+00:00

Time, Movement, and Desire

Tom Bacchus

I AM IN THE RARE-BOOKS SECTION of the University of Pennsylvania Library, poring over books of photos by the famous photographer. Sequence after sequence details the infinite positions of men, women, children, and animals sitting, standing, walking.

Of course it is the nude images of men, alone and together, especially the muscular men, that interest me. Each shot shows a different angle and fraction of time, displaying the simple masculine charm of each man’s body. Captured over a hundred years ago, they still create desire.

My curiosity led me to visit the Private Collections Section at the library, where my friend Alex has been so helpful over the years. Often he let me pore over famous playwrights’ personal letters and documents. When I wanted to dig deeper into the love life of Walt Whitman, he produced boxes of documents and a seemingly endless bibliography.

Therefore, when I asked about the life of the famous photographer, his eyes lit up and he grinned.

"I have some very special items."

He led me to a large table and disappeared into the lengthy stacks. He returned, arms filled with a cardboard box. "Enjoy," he whispered as he left me with these treasures, which I have copiously rewritten for your enjoyment.

It seems the photographer had an assistant, a young handsome man who often posed for the series of action shots. The photographer never imagined the erotic potential of the images. They were strictly for academic purposes, weren’t they?

A. J. Parker, a young artist of the era, who was also a rower, worked for a time as the photographer’s assistant. He kept a diary of his activities during the period. Hidden away for nearly a century, it is faded around the edges and written longhand in pen and ink.

The young Parker took a job with the photographer out of scientific interest and with an interest in observing physical activity, as well as a search in rowing for what he termed "the perfect stroke."

But it turned out that other interests developed in addition to the filmed images. Parker wrote of a series of photographs that have yet to see the light of day. Now possibly destroyed, these images may have represented a beauty and magic that we can only imagine.

Nevertheless, we do have the diaries.

May 14, 1886 — Have begun a series of photographic works with Eadweard Muybridge. He has requested several brave young women and older gentlemen to participate in this scientific study of movement. Muybridge has worked in the courtyard of the Veterinary Hall and Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. Who would have thought that such discoveries could have been made when a fellow professor made a bet to see if a horse’s legs completely leave the ground while at a gallop?

After accomplishing the cumbersome task of bringing a rowing machine from the gymnasium to his outdoor photographic studio, and posing in uniform for him, I mentioned to E.M. my interest in the new science, and my enthusiasm in seeking employment. He hired me on the spot to assist his portrait work and the setting of equipment.

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