Sunday, December 27, 2009

For A Friend . . .

Over the past I don't know how many months there has been an exchange of friendly banter going on between the owner of this page with its roots in France, and the artist in Canada who is the driving force behind Décolleté Glimpses. She goes by the nickname "Louciao" when leaving comments, but is also known as Lynne Ciacco if you stop into her website dedicated purely to the excellent art she creates, Lynne Ciacco, Original Fine Art.
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So Lynne Louciao, I just wanted to dedicate this little post to you, to say : "Thank you for being there, and for being so much fun !" I can't tell you how exceedingly pleased I was when your Christmas card came through in the snail mail the other day . . . which makes me the proud owner of an original, signed, Lynne Ciacco masterpiece, which I will treasure :
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And I was equally pleased, Lynne, when the card you sent from the Equinox Gallery, in Vancouver, Canada, came through a few weeks back, featuring the photographic art of Fred Herzog. Fred Herzog is one of my larger scale heroes, there is something in his work which just positively sets me to salivating, which is a polite way to say literally drooling, slobbering, and foaming at the mouth . . . The Equinox Gallery website is probably the best place on the web to view an assortment of Fred Herzog's photographs, which are naturally for sale there. If you are interested in acquiring fine photographs of truly exceptional quality, do pay them a visit. And I hope they will forgive me for scanning the below image from the card that Lynne sent, its appearance here is not for commercial gain, but simply to pay heartfelt tribute to one of the greatest photographers ever, in my most humble opinion. The title of the below Fred Herzog photograph is "Two Boys, 1960". Which just happens to be the year I was born.
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23 comments:

Deborah said...

A lovely tribute, Owen. I will be sure to look her up.

The Panorama said...

Nice post Owen, I will visit her website. And happy holidays to you...been meaning to say that on your previous post but hey, better late than never:) Cheers!

CiCi said...

The year you were born. Makes it even more dear. You are right, they are both great artists. As are you.

Ann said...

as usual..such a joy to visit. caught up on your posts..you never fail to make me feel better!! been wallowing in my own pity party for some time,visiting you makes me realize I need to kick myself in the butt and open my eyes to whats around..sure,certain things are not the best for me right now,but I need to see the things that are.
thank you for opening my eyes again.

Owen said...

Hi Deborah... so are you in the frozen great northwest where Robert Service wrote of towering mountain peaks and purple valleys ? Or back to the sunnier climes of southern France ? Well, wherever, I hope the holidays are full of good things for you. It is always a pleasure to see where you've left a kind word here and a good word there... Funny, we seem to have similar tastes in the blogs we keep up with...

Take care...

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Hi Panorama, many thanks, and happiest of holidays to you too...
:-)

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Dear Techno... hope you aren't too totally snowed under ? Everytime I read the news sounds like another storm has come through the midwest... stay warm !

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Dear Ann, Hang in there... Spring is the next season to come... we just have to get through Winter... I guess when we are not feeling great, for whatever reason, the only sensible thing to do is to try to take stock of what is good in our lives, and really focus on that, and try to slowly phase out the negative stuff. I wish you well... and appreciate your company here on the blogging trails...

@eloh said...

Very nice, love those boys.

James said...

Great tribute Owen. Both the card and the photo are fantastic.
The boys remind me of some beer drinking boys that I saw in a train compartment in the Czech Republic they were about 12 or 13 yrs old.

Lone Grey Squirrel said...

It is wonderful when we make new friendships that matter while we blog. Thanks for pointing us to Lynne and for posting that photo by Fred Herzog. It is a wonderful photo. I prefer 1962, though. the year i was born. ;)

Laurie said...

Hey Owen,

I am so looking forward to seeing your 2010 output - Joy!

Laurie

Anonymous said...

It's so nice to receive mail in the old-fashioned way. I hope that never changes.
Both your friends' sites look interesting.

Lydia said...

I so enjoyed the last two blogs you recommended, so will check out these as well.
btw, as far as photographers go.....you rate right up there, Owen. Your photography and commentary throughout this year have enriched my days. And I thank you.

Owen said...

Hey Dedene, yeah, there is something really nice about receiving real mail, just not the same as the cyber stuff... I wish I could write in calligraphy and produce letters like people did 200 years ago... delivered by horse drawn post... And indeed, check her out, she's good...

Happy New Years... ! ! !
(It used to be I always looked forward to a live broadcast of a certain traditional New Years Eve show from the west coast... no more from that cup...)

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Hullo Laurie ! I'm really happy to see you are still checking in from time to time... What a year you've had ! Well, I hope 2010 will give you a little more blogging time for Creating Pictures and the Graveyard Detective, you are doing some wonderful work there... time will tell I guess. In the meanwhile, the happiest of holidays for you...

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Dear LGS, indeed, indeed, blogging connections can bring unexpected pleasures... And '62 is ok too, I think those early sixties years were good vintages...

:-)

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Hi James, hope you got photos of the beer drinking youngsters... to do a counterpoint to this one ? In any case, sounds like you had a good trip... I've been meaning to get to the Czech Republik and Slovakia for some time now... am going to have to make it happen. I can remember way back in 1968 as a kid listening to the radio about events happening there, and collecting stamps from Czechoslovakia...

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Hey @eloh; they look like trouble, and they could both use some new shoes...

Owen said...

Hi Lydia, many thanks ! Will try to keep this place lively as we head into 2010... really appreciate your company on this blogging road trip...

Lynne with an e said...

Does blushing show through a comment box (question mark...cannot find various signs and symbols on this borrowed computer). I am touched by your lovely tribute, Owen. As I mentioned early on in our blogging exchanges, I am a bit of an acquired taste. Very happy that my offerings please your palate rather than leaving a bad taste in your mouth or spinach between your front teeth. But all kidding aside, which is a challenge for me, I do cherish our exchanges. And I hungrily look forward to many more such delicious exchanges, served up in deep-fried banter!!

Nathalie H.D. said...

Louciao's words above give an idea of the person she is and the way she writes - delightful.

Two boys, 1960! Now that's photography!

Batteson.Ind said...

That bottom picture could so easily be any working class district at any moment in time.. fantastic picture!
Hope you had a fantastic christmas, wishing you all the best for the coming new year, cheers for the great comment on the blog, it's always a pleasure to hear from you.. looking forward to a whole year's worth of owen thought pictures! All the very best things and a hefty; CHEERS!

Marguerite said...

Thanks for the introduction to Lynne. Happy New Year, cher! Cheers!

clo said...

un big kiss Owen...j'ai adoré les créations de Lynne...riche en couleurs comme j'aime....:o)
passes un beau reveillon...;o)
bisoux du sud...

Roxana said...

such a coincidence, i had just been on Louciao's blog today, but from Robert's page - amazing discovery!

and i am off to check Fred Herzog now, a thousand thanks, dear Owen, you have as usual the most unusual gift for internet-connecting :-)

Anonymous said...

Pour ce qui est de la photo des enfants assis contre un mur, il faut que tu ailles voir le blog d'un ami et regarder la photo numéro 15 (je ne sais pas comment il a fait son blog mais il n'y a pas de messages à proprement parler).

Donc photo 15, http://dixansdevoyages-titou.blogspot.com/

La photo d'entête de son blog a été prise par moi à Saint Louis du Sénégal en avril 2007 (un plage magnifique avec des enfants qui courent vers la pirogue).

babbler said...

That is such a wonderful photo! I agree with the above comments, yor photos are every bit as rich and satisfying as anything I have seen. It certainly has been a more interesting year with your wanderings and musings to slide behind in amazement! You are a fresh leaf in the rasp of a slugs nibbler!
Love from your "gooed" friends,
Mrs. and Mrs. Slug

Anonymous said...

Thanks for the advice Owen, as usual your fine taste when it comes to blogs is warranty of a satisfaction. I agree with you about Herzog, simply extraordinary. I want to wish a happy New year eve, lots of champagne and fun for you, and then again, a wonderful and extraordinary New Year, hope we can have more Owen for a long while. Regards.

Owen said...

You all are too much... now I'm all teared up, how am I supposed to see what I'm doing here... getting a new post together for you right now... will be up soon...

Again, thank you everybody ! Y'all are the mostest ! The bestest ! The most fabulous blogging pals anyone could ever want... See you soon on the blog trails...

:-)

;-D