The Flickr Homemovieeffect Image Generatr

Although the afternoon walk on this sunny spring afternoon was tranquil, judging by the force needed to shred this woody fiber, things are not always calm among the oaks, first, and beeches.

Press L for lightbox (large) view; click the image or press Z for full image display.

Hover the mouse pointer over the image for pop-up remarks.

A lot of wood, cut to required lengths, went into the steps and walkways to conduct hikers across the dune forest with minimal erosion from people roaming off the trail.

Press L for lightbox (large) view; click the image or press Z for full image display.

Hover the mouse pointer over the image for pop-up remarks.

The snow fences holding the shifting sands at North Beach Park are still in place between the big picnic shelter and the waterline down below on this sunny Saturday afternoon, April 12th.

Press L for lightbox (large) view; click the image or press Z for full image display.

Hover the mouse pointer over the image for pop-up remarks.

The bright morning light of April is coming from close to due east. So the uprights of the railing cast their shadows almost perpendicular to the line of sight of the south-facing camera lens.

Press L for lightbox (large) view; click the image or press Z for full image display.

Hover the mouse pointer over the image for pop-up remarks.

March and April are exciting times of transition from winter into spring. This sunny photo shows the quiet before blossoms and leaves fill the branches across the woodland of the dunes.

Press L for lightbox (large) view; click the image or press Z for full image display.

Hover the mouse pointer over the image for pop-up remarks.

Before the trees are covered in 2025 leaves, the views around the woodland of the west coast of the lower peninsula are wider and longer than during the green canopy and walls of summertime. The first part of the video recording shows the long climb to the top of the dune and the last part of the video is down the other side to the east of the towering ridge.

Press L for 'lightbox' to view the clip on a black background.

The annual cycle of old bull rushes collapsing after the freeze-thaw cycles of warm days and cold nights makes way for the fresh shoots making their way out of the mud and into the bright air. By early summer this view is mostly green and only later in the year do the seedpods fill out, ready to burst in the fall and winter months.

Press L for lightbox (large) view; click the image or press Z for full image display.

Hover the mouse pointer over the image for pop-up remarks.

The slider is not much smaller than a tennis ball. The box of French fries is not much bigger than the slider. Together they constitute a few hours of calories for the diner. Often the fat and sugar of fast foods equate to more calories, ounce for ounce, than do healthier foods free from oil and salt and sugar at such densities. But the absence of fiber in most fast food means the person has hunger pangs sooner than with the non-fast foods.

As cost of labor, ingredients, and fees payable to credit card companies whittle away at profits for small business operations, rather than to raise menu prices, another solution is to shrink the serving sizes incrementally. Until finally, there is only a fraction of the original menu item's size.

Press L for lightbox (large) view; click the image or press Z for full image display.

Hover the mouse pointer over the image for pop-up remarks.

Many of Mathias Alten's paintings are cared for and on public display at the campus of GVSU in downtown Grand Rapids, Michigan. The main collection is at the south end of Building E, but directly above on the 2nd floor are additional works. This video clip shows the corridor leading to that collection and marks the decades of the painter's life from 1871 to his final year in 1938. Seeing a long and productive life spelled out in words and pictures like this is very different to reading an obituary article or discovering a full-length biography to read.

Press L for 'lightbox' to view the clip on a black background.

Christopher Myers' exhibition at the G.R.A.M. wraps up in a few weeks, but its mixture of large scale ship models (how many migrants have come to the shores of North America, at least before mass market jet travel) and wall-sized applique fabric murals invite visitors to wander and wonder at this subject and the experiences of the people described, including in the surrounding counties of west Michigan.

Press L for 'lightbox' to view the clip on a black background.

Online the MSRP is about 60,000 (before or after #TrumpConvictedFelon surcharges is unclear). Perhaps in 10 years there will be many vibrant eVs around the streets. But for now, this one stands out.

Press L for lightbox (large) view; click the image or press Z for full image display.

Hover the mouse pointer over the image for pop-up remarks.

Part of the permanent exhibition (3rd Floor of the G.R.A.M.) is beauty found in the design of furniture and other parts of work or home life. This raises the question of 'beauty'. By putting things on a pedestal with studio spot lighting, and perhaps a security box surrounding it, visitors are invited to regard the 3-D pieces as a special kind of sculpture; one that is beautify to the eyes, but also succeeds (or fails) in its functional uses. The practical and the aesthetically pleasing should amplify each other, increasing the delight of use and the delight of looking. More often, though, one aspect outweighs the other: more beauty as an object than as a practical tool or furnishing. Or the reverse: more value in its pleasure of use than in the look of the thing.

Press L for lightbox (large) view; click the image or press Z for full image display.

Hover the mouse pointer over the image for pop-up remarks.

Stood within the special exhibition by Kristina Scheufelt, "Fallow Season," one of her 3-D pieces fills the display case while in the distance the central space that joins all exhibition halls of the 2nd floor can be seen.

Press L for lightbox (large) view; click the image or press Z for full image display.

Hover the mouse pointer over the image for pop-up remarks.

Thanks to corporate financial support Tuesday afternoons and Thursday evenings are open to the public at no charge at the Grand Rapids Art Museum. This photo of the top floor shows parts of the permanent collection on display, with some pieces removed and others added from time to time so that repeat visitors may see more and more of the holdings. Although most pieces are 2-dimensional, here and there sculptures small and medium also have a place here.

While the rest of the world comes and goes outside, driving or walking past the museum, a steady stream of keen viewers make their one once or multiple times to explore the permanent and the temporary (special or traveling) exhibitions. Perhaps this reflects the wider society of 2025 in general: most without time, money, awareness, or interest in galleries. But some with deep interest and keen (emotional) response to visual expression ancient and modern.

Press L for lightbox (large) view; click the image or press Z for full image display.

Hover the mouse pointer over the image for pop-up remarks.

Different to the voyages of indentured (passage paid by person holding a work contract over the traveler) and enslaved people, the age of these ships (portrayed as models for the art gallery) means the people crossing the ocean had to pay for their own ticket. Christopher Myers' exhibition at the GRAM, "Myths and Migration," includes these vessel along with the wall-sized scenes he made with applique fabric.

Press L for lightbox (large) view; click the image or press Z for full image display.

Hover the mouse pointer over the image for pop-up remarks.

Although the main thing that sets a museum apart from a video presentation or a published account of a subject is the physicality of the 2 and 3-dimensional displays, there is still a lot to be gained in book form. So it makes sense that the resting area planted in the middle of the open space between surrounding exhibit spaces should include a set of books to browse while seated to collect one's thoughts, reflect on the galleries, or to jot down impressions.

Press L for lightbox (large) view; click the image or press Z for full image display.

Hover the mouse pointer over the image for pop-up remarks.

The noonday sun casts strong shadows at this corner of the ramp in front of the Grand Rapids Art Museum. The strong lines of metal and cement, along with their shadows are a magnet for photo compositions.

Press L for lightbox (large) view; click the image or press Z for full image display.

Hover the mouse pointer over the image for pop-up remarks.

Habits are formed early. So it seems reasonable to think that young people on field-trips or accompanying adults and who enjoy the experience will form a life-long habit of seeking out art and other museum galleries in the decades of their lives to come.

Press L for lightbox (large) view; click the image or press Z for full image display.

Hover the mouse pointer over the image for pop-up remarks.

Context matters - not only will the same food taste differently in one setting (porcelain versus Styrofoam; formal dining room versus standing at a cocktail table), but also a public lecture will be received differently in this auditorium than in a locker room or stadium. As such, the many details of interior design, sound system, and use of lighting produce a particular frame for the content being expressed. People hear with their eyes as well as their ears.

Press L for lightbox (large) view; click the image or press Z for full image display.

Hover the mouse pointer over the image for pop-up remarks.

Each new generation discovers Mathias J. Alten (1871-1938), who made Grand Rapids his home, rather than to move to one of the bustling cities like Cleveland, Detroit, Chicago or NYC. His parents came from the western border of German first. He joined them at age 17 (1888). Thanks to the collected Alten paintings by a Michigan donor to GVSU, there are now dozens (of his lifetime 3000) of paintings on permanent display on the ground floor and the next floor of the university's downtown Grand Rapids campus in Building E.

This photo shows a statue of the painter in the prime of life with tools of his trade, on his way to or from a location for him to portray in oils on canvas.

Press L for lightbox (large) view; click the image or press Z for full image display.

Hover the mouse pointer over the image for pop-up remarks.