... Stuart Williams has passed away...
It's damned, the RIP infos/messages do not cease...
His e-mail silent for some time, my e-mail unanswered, his phone-nr void.
All together a bad sign, in the description of the ad for his 3rd book then the
death message.
.. His 1st book "Birds on the horizon" triggered my wish to try Latin America.
I thought joining him would be a sure bet as an outfitter would not dare to
confront him with a no-show of birds.
I went with him twice to Argentina.
In the 2nd trip trying to go for the best places for:
- Ducks with bonvivant & raconteur David Denies in Goya,
to the piranhas and anacondas infested swamps of the Parana river
- Doves in Cordoba with diligent Robin Benedikt
- Magellan geese in the Patagonian plains near Viedma at the
Rio Negro river with gregarious Jorge Trucco
All arrangements by Frontiers on an all-inclusive basis.
Here are 2 exemplary photos from Stuarts 2nd book, in all its magic and spell.
http://www.jpgbox.com/page/70086http://www.jpgbox.com/page/70087 Have complemented with a 3rd photo, the birthplace of Stuarts favourite composer
Joseph Haydn, in Rohrau village 50 km off Vienna
http://www.jpgbox.com/page/70088...
Upon my return I have been asked to show some photos esp. the geese bag.
In an environment of max-quantity-one-digit-bag/shoot what you can eat/"Tierwohl mantra"
the bags arose the typical question: "What happens with this huge bag ?"
I had 3 types of answers ready, depending on the known or guessed political
orientation of the interrogator.
To a greenie/reddie/leftie: The geese are donated to a nearby orphan house
To neo-liberal/bluie:The feathers used in the Carneval of Rio and a French style pate
is made from the flesh
To a blackie/conservative: The geese are fed to the pigs in the next farm house.
...
And the truth is .... no time or place to bless/implant complacent Neo-Savonarolesc holiness
to another culture/society.
..
Here are 3 more photos from his 2nd book showing the pharaonic flock dimensions
of the birds at least in the pre-2000 years.
One gigantic dove flock personally seen in Cordoba
Magellan geese
http://www.jpgbox.com/page/70089 White faced tree duck
http://www.jpgbox.com/page/70095Doves
http://www.jpgbox.com/page/70091...
He got me also an invitation to a Mexican duckshoot owned by wealthy
Texas entrpreneur, a successful business man of many trades.
I could observe Stuarts diligence in collection photos. Still using his
analogue camera. I had 2 rolls of film spent, he at the same time 20.
So no wonder that within there were at least half a dozen worthwile for
publication.
..
He is gone home now. What stay with me are great memories of golden days
with him afield. No more to come.
...
R.I.P. my dear friend
...
F.N.
