Bibliographical details regarding L. Misak's practice have not been located. Judging from a few surviving photographs, he was initially based in Zeytoun, which was one of the most important centers of Armenian cultural and revolutionary movement in the Ottoman Empire. Those are standard, commissioned portraits depicting high-ranking individuals and army officers. It is most likely that the photographer was exiled or escaped during the 1915–22 events and was later stationed in the satellite-city of Heliopolis in the environs of Cairo, where he established his private studio. As is clear from dated photographs, Missak’s establishment operated from the beginning of the 1920s until at least 1947.

Missak’s portraits are images made in accordance to the widely-used conventions of commercial studio portraiture of the early 20^thcentury: clean and straightforward likenesses in which the photographer has focused on diligently reproducing the outward appearances of his customers.

We also know of some photographs by Missak, which depict the tombs of Armenian intellectuals buried in Alexandria. Produced for the local, Armenian-language press, these images suggest that the photographer was an active participant in the life of the Egyptian-Armenian community.

Vigen Galstyan, 2017