Let the sun shine brightly in March

Posted on by farlane

Let me first wish a very happy 313 Day to the city of Detroit & all who love it! There is no city that I would rather be from, and none that I’d rather live in. Then let me also say that I think it’s kind of hilarious that I was looking for the perfect photo to celebrate the city and already had it queued up for a post!

Let the sun shine bright on the city by Scott Laidlaw

Let the sun shine bright on the city by Scott Laidlaw

USA Today shares that the dramatic increase in daylight in March is part of a fascinating and unbalanced yearly cycle:

While sunrise and sunset times are constantly on the move, sunlight rapidly increases in March (and rapidly decreases in September). During the month of March, some parts of the United States will add over an hour-and-a-half of sun by the end of the month.

…The increase in daylight, or the amount of time the sun spends above the horizon, will be most obvious in the northernmost parts of the U.S., which will face the sun more directly as the Northern Hemisphere tilts toward the sun on Earth’s axis at a 23.5-degree angle, according to Brandon Buckingham, a meteorologist at AccuWeather.

FYI, Michigan will pick up between 80 and 100 minutes of daylight this month.

Scott took this back in 2020 and he notes how 3-D it looks. You can see more in his massive Detroit gallery & for sure follow him on Flickr for the latest!

The mural was the 100th painted by Detroit artist Waleed Johnson which is pretty amazing when you consider how much work it is to paint a mural!

Support Michigan in Pictures with Patreon

Detroit Photo Meetup: You Gotta Have Art

Posted on by farlane

Detroit Institute of Arts by Coretta Billy

A lot of the photographers I feature on Michigan in Pictures as well as many readers are from the Detroit area. If you are and are interested in growing your skills and/or your network of photographers, I encourage you to check out the “Click & Create: Detroit Photography Meetup” this Saturday, Jan 24th 10:00 AM at the Detroit Institute of Arts.

They write: “Join us for a photography meet-up designed to spark creativity across all ages and skill levels. We’ll explore the space together, work from shared shot lists, compare styles, and trade inspiration as we capture fresh perspectives in the heart of the city …. Meet inside the Woodward Entrance. Bring your camera or phone. No flash photography. No tripods or extra equipment. Just your eye, your curiosity, and your creative energy.”

Coretta Billy shared the event with me. She specializes in portraits & events, and is of the photographers who will be in attendance. You can follow her on Facebook and view & purchase her work at corettabillyiecphotography.com.

Support Michigan in Pictures with Patreon

Michigan rolling out Semiquincentennial license plates for 2026

Posted on by farlane
Bicentennial License Plate Map - Michigan by design turnpike

Bicentennial License Plate Map – Michigan by design turnpike

I’m old enough to remember the Bicentennial craze of 1976 from Sam the Eagle to Michigan’s iconic bicentennial license plates. Get ready drivers, because Bridge Magazine shares that Michigan is bringing back the red, white and blue retro license plate next month in celebration of America’s 250th anniversary: Beginning Jan. 2, Michiganders will be able to order a new red, white and blue semiquincentennial plate that is modeled after the 1976 bicentennial design. The plate features updated patriotic elements, including stars and stripes, and will be available through the end of 2026.

The photos that David of Design Turnpike shared years ago of his original license plate artwork were so perfect for this post, so I was happy to see that he’s still in business! Follow Design Turnpike on Facebook and view & purchase his work on his website.

Support Michigan in Pictures with Patreon

Triple Dip Polar Vortex coming for Michigan

Posted on by farlane
Shark Attack - Triple X by Jill N. Hamilton-Krawczyk

Shark Attack – Triple X by Jill N. Hamilton-Krawczyk

Accuweather shares that much of the US and definitely Michigan is facing a rare “triple dip” polar vortex:

“This Arctic air outbreak can be attributed to a displacement of the polar vortex,” AccuWeather Lead Long-Range Meteorologist Paul Pastelok said. “The outbreak this week will be the first of probably three such rounds with it. Another cold blast is likely next week and a third the week after that,” Pastelok explained. “The waves of Arctic air will lead to significant surges in energy demands.”

I originally shared this photo way back on April 1, 2010 along with a pretty funny spoof, and I am very happy to bring it back along with several more that Jill shared from The Heidelberg Project in Detroit, a truly astonishing work of activist art. See many more in her excellent Detroit gallery on Flickr & stay warm people!!

Support Michigan in Pictures with Patreon

Rock on, Michigan in Pictures

Posted on by farlane
Frankfort Rock Garden by Andrew McFarlane

Rain Comes by Andrew McFarlane

9 years ago I started a Michigan in Pictures Patreon page to allow folks to throw me a few bucks in support of michpics. A big thank you to all who have done so – it means a lot to know you care.

My best friend Ken who has since passed on & I took these photos way back in August of 2007 after an honestly incredible rock stacking event on the Lake Michigan shoreline just north of the village of Frankfort. I still have no idea who did this, but I know that I will never forget it!! I hope you enjoy these photos & the video and also that you’re able to make or discover magic in your corner of the Great Lakes State.

Frankfort Rock Gallery photos by Andrew McFarlane & Ken Lake

Support Michigan in Pictures with Patreon

Stevie Wonder coming to Detroit & Grand Rapids

Posted on by farlane

Stevie Wonder Mural Detroit by Andrew McFarlane

mLive shares that Motown great and 25-time Grammy winner Stevie Wonder will be doing a pair of October concerts in Grand Rapids and Detroit, one at Little Caesars Arena in the Motor City on Tuesday, October 22, and the other at Van Andel Arena in GR on Wednesday, October 30. Tickets went on sale Friday – click those links before they’re gone!

The Detroit Free Press shares that the Stevie Wonder mural in downtown Detroit was finished in 2019 by London-based artist Richard Wilson who paid for the mural out of his own pocket!

Visible from Brush Street on the south-facing wall of the Music Hall Center for the Performing Arts, Wilson’s portrait spans roughly 8,000 square feet and is large enough to be seen by an airplane passing overhead. “For me, he’s the greatest living singer, songwriter and musician,” said the 45-year-old Wilson. “In 300 years, I’m sure he’ll be looked (at) as a Beethoven, Mozart, Bach — that kind of epic influence on humanity.

This is another one of my pics. A couple ways you can support me are to subscribe to the Michigan in Pictures Facebook (and join the group) and for sure to toss me a couple bucks on Patreon!

Support Michigan in Pictures with Patreon

Honolulu Blue Monday

Posted on by farlane

Dodge Fountain in Honolulu Blue by Andrew McFarlane

The Detroit Lions kicked off their highly anticipated 2024 season with a 26-20 overtime victory over former QB Matthew Stafford and the Los Angeles Rams! In honor of this, I decided to share one of my own photos, a picture of the Dodge Fountain on Hart Plaza in downtown Detroit lit up in Honolulu Blue.

I knew that the Dodge Fountain had been designed by artist Isamu Noguchi, but I just learned that he designed Philip A. Hart Plaza as well:

Noguchi’s most ambitious effort at the time, the Philip A. Hart Plaza project, began with a commission for a fountain and spanned almost a decade as the artist expanded his scope to create the surrounding plaza along with facilities below surface level. Envisioned as a place for the community to gather, the plaza layout emphasized flexibility to accommodate large groups. Dotting the eight-acre site are various stepped areas for both seating and play; an outdoor amphitheater built into a hollow below-surface grade; and a 120-foot-tall stainless steel, torqued pylon marking one entrance. Its central feature is the Horace E. Dodge Fountain, a horizontal ring of stainless steel suspended by legs above a massive granite pool and animated by the results of Noguchi’s ongoing experiments with programmed spray patterns (as well complex lighting schemes for nighttime).

I don’t have a photography website, but if you enjoy Michigan in Pictures you can support me with a few bucks on Patreon!!

Support Michigan in Pictures with Patreon

Rest in Peace & Power, Aretha Franklin

Posted on by farlane
Et soudain, une fresque en chemin m'Aretha... by Jeanne Menjoulet

Et soudain, une fresque en chemin m’Aretha… by Jeanne Menjoulet

“Aretha is a gift from God. When it comes to expressing yourself through song, there is no one who can touch her. She is the reason why women want to sing. Aretha has everything – the power, the technique. She is honest with everything she says.”
-Mary J. Blige

I almost never feature photos from outside Michigan here, and I’ve never gone this far for one but please hang with me here!! Jeanne took this photo of a mural by Citra Arm Crew on rue Ordener in Paris just two weeks after the August 16, 2018 passing of the Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin. It’s such an incredible testament to the powerful legacy of one of Michigan and the entire nation’s most famous ambassadors.

See more in Jeanne’s Street Art in Paris album on Flickr.

Read the post about Franklin’s passing & check out Aretha at the top of her game at Cobo Hall in 1968.

Support Michigan in Pictures with Patreon

Knowledge written on stone: the Sanilac Petroglyphs

Posted on by farlane

Petroglyphs by Ashleigh Mowers

The Sanilac Petroglyphs Historic State Park in Michigan’s Thumb is the home of Michigan’s largest known collection of early Native American teachings carved in stone. The 420-acre park is open seasonally & managed jointly with the Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe of Michigan. The excellent Stateside Podcast shares that the name of the park in Anishinaabemowin is ezhibiigaadek asin, which means “knowledge written on stone” and says in part:

One of the most popular petroglyphs in the park is a figure of an archer, known in Anishinaabemowin as ebmodaakowet. The figure’s body is an arrow, as is his hat, and he holds a bow and arrow in his hands.

“Early on, when archeologists who were not consulting with tribes, you know, saw that, they thought, oh, surely this must be a hunting magic. They took it very literally. ” explained Tchorzynski. “But actually, this ebmodaakowet is actually shooting the arrow of knowledge seven generations into the future. And this was a carving that was left with great love and great affection for descendants in the future, to remind people of our responsibilities to be good ancestors, to preserve and remember, and our obligation to shoot the arrow of knowledge into the future as well. We all must be good ancestors.”

The fragile carvings are easily affected by natural forces. The Marshall sandstone is a very soft rock, and so many of the petroglyphs have faded naturally throughout the centuries. Over the years, the petroglyphs have also been damaged by human hands. Parts of them have been vandalized, and pieces of the stone have been chipped away and taken. In order to protect the carvings from degrading over time, a wooden pavilion was erected over the site. A rope now separates visitors from the rock.

Read (or listen to) a lot more at Stateside!

Ashleigh took this photo back in 2017. You can read her great writing about traveling in Michigan (and elsewhere) at Go See Do Explore. She has a brief article about her visit as well.

Support Michigan in Pictures with Patreon

Sanilac Petroglyphs by Leon Baker (don’t have a link for him anymore!)

Say Hello to Mackatron

Posted on by farlane
Mackatron by AaRon Thompson

Mack-a-tron by AaRon Thompson

Mack-A-Tron is a 30 foot tall robot sculpture that was assembled right here in Michigan & now resides in Mackinaw City at the Mackinaw Crossings shopping center. The mLive article on Mack-a-tron features Aaron’s photo and says in part:

“We were looking for something that said Mackinaw City and Michigan,” Mackinaw Crossing owner Joe Lieghio said of the piece designed by Kalifano. “This particular piece of art is made with auto parts – and Michigan is all about the auto industry and tourism. There is even some Mackinac Bridge steel in it,” he said, adding the bridge pieces are from the old steel grating that the Michigan Department of Transportation sells when it replaces the bridge road sections.

Aaron has some great shots of this Transformers on his Facebook page – check them out!!

Support Michigan in Pictures with Patreon