#photo studio kalamazoo

[finkanie]

FINKANIE PHOTOGRAPHY IS MOVING! → © finkanie photography

Hello friends! Since 2020, Finkanie Photography has been located at McGillen’s Crossing in Mattawan. It has been such a wonderful studio; I am so sad to be leaving it, but it is time to grow! The new studio is located at 57645 Murray Street, right in the heart of “downtown Mattawan” as those of us lovingly refer to our bustling downtown area! :) We are right around the corner from the former studio, and now, we are SO CLOSE TO MOO MOO’S!!!!!!!!! WOO HOO!!!! I know some clients who will be very happy with this news! :) :) :)

We will have much more space when we are able to get everything set up.

Some changes include a separate changing room, bigger waiting area for clients, and more options for multiple sessions to be held at once allowing for more leagues/teams to be accommodated at once! The new studio is located in the former Wildfire Grace retail location next to Halftime. Fans of Wildfire Grace will be happy to know that you will be able to find your favorite items from them at Vintage Inspired! Be sure to check out their booth, coming soon!

2024 is going to have a LOT of changes, and I am excited to experience them with our wonderful community! As with the last studio, I will be sharing progress as we go along getting things set up!

[garretschuelke]

Another year has passed, which means another season of #powerfulGSP has finished, which also means it's time for the CHRISTMAS SPECIAL! Garret is joined by Zach's longtime friend and fellow traveler Kevin Charron to talk about the holidays, his adventures around the world, having Chinese babies forced into his arms for impromptu photos, and concluding with details of Kevin's and Zach's upcoming adventure in America's final remaining frontier, Alaska!

Recorded at Elmblad Media Group studios, based within the Park Trades Center, in Kalamazoo, Michigan, on Sunday, December 11th, 2022.

Intro Song: “Fuck You, It's Christmas" by Tedd Hazard

Outro Song: "A Late Christmas Card" by Jonas Selander

All songs used with permission.

[gagosiangallery]

Titus Kaphar at Gagosian West 21st Street, New York

September 22, 2020

TITUS KAPHAR From a Tropical Space October 1–December 19, 2020 522 West 21st Street, New York __________ Gagosian is pleased to present From a Tropical Space, an exhibition of new paintings by Titus Kaphar. This is Kaphar’s first exhibition with the gallery and inaugurates his representation. A painter, sculptor, filmmaker, and installation artist, Kaphar reexamines American history by deconstructing existing representations and styles through his own formal innovations. His practice seeks to dislodge history from its status as “past” in order to understand its continuing impact on the present. Using materials including tar, glass, and rusted nails—together with highly refined oil painting—and employing techniques such as cutting, shredding, stitching, binding, and erasing, he reworks canonical art historical codes and conventions. And by uncovering the conceptual and narrative underpinnings of certain source images, he explores the manipulation of cultural and personal identity as a central thematic concern while inventing new narratives. While much of Kaphar’s work begins with an exhaustive study of pre-twentieth-century master painting techniques, From a Tropical Space sees him wield these various methods to create an emotionally saturated visual landscape that is entirely contemporary. Just as artists, through time, have translated the fraught and mercurial sociopolitical contexts in which they operate into new and often radical aesthetic modes, so do the pervasive social and cultural anxieties of the world in which we find ourselves resonate throughout Kaphar’s new work.

In From a Tropical Space, Kaphar presents a haunting narrative of Black motherhood wherein collective fear and trauma crescendo in the disappearance of children, literalized through the physical excision of their images from the canvases themselves. The absence of each juvenile figure—whether seated in a stroller or held in a woman’s arms—reveals only the blank gallery wall beneath. The intense coloration of the suburban environments in which the figures are set only heightens a pervasive tension—these are images for uncertain times. Included in the exhibition is Analagous Colors (2020). Demonstrating further the broader resonance of Kaphar’s recent work, the painting was featured on the cover of the June 15 issue of Time magazine, which included a report on the protests sparked by George Floyd’s killing at the hands of Minneapolis police. Kaphar’s work and practice reflect on the experience and perception of historically underrepresented and marginalized groups, including the African American community. Key to Gagosian’s representation of the artist is the gallery’s substantive ongoing support for NXTHVN (Next Haven), a new national arts model established by Titus Kaphar with cofounder and chairman of the board Jason Price and cofounder Jonathan Brand in 2015. Located in the Dixwell neighborhood of New Haven, Connecticut, NXTHVN nurtures creative talent within and beyond the local community, offering fellowships, residencies, and other professional development opportunities to artists, curators, and local high school students. NXTHVN is housed in two repurposed factory buildings designed by Deborah Berke Partners, where it maintains exhibition and performance spaces in addition to studio and co-working facilities. Titus Kaphar was born in 1976 in Kalamazoo, Michigan, and lives and works in New Haven, Connecticut. Collections include the Museum of Modern Art, New York; Brooklyn Museum, New York; Studio Museum in Harlem, New York; Pérez Art Museum Miami; Seattle Art Museum; and National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne, Australia. Exhibitions include Selections from Asphalt and Chalk, MoMA PS1, New York (2015); UnSeen: Our Past in a New Light, National Portrait Gallery, Washington, DC (2018–19); Knockout, Legacy Museum, Tuskegee University, AL (2019–20); Redaction, MoMA PS1, New York (2019); and Suffering from Realness, MASS MoCA, North Adams, MA (2019–20). Kaphar is the recipient of awards including the Gwendolyn Knight and Jacob Lawrence Fellowship (2009), Rappaport Prize (2018), and MacArthur Fellowship (2018). _____ Titus Kaphar, Twins, 2020, oil on canvas, 83 3/4 × 68 inches (212.7 × 172.7 cm) © Titus Kaphar. Photo: Alexander Harding

[alexakarabin]

This is what art fair prep looks like. My studio was finally clean for like a week, after being messy for a year. Don’t worry, it’s super messy again 🥺. Haha...haha. I plan to do a photo shoot early next week and I will have everything that is still available listed on alexak.com by Black Friday. . . . . . . . #artshow #artshowprep #artfair #kalamazoo #kalamazooinstituteofarts #westmichigan #chicagoartist #kalamazooartist #arthop #nature #natureart #beekeeper #batart #bats #oddities #insects #entomology #biology #sciart #naturedecor #naturegift #giftsforteachers #glittergirl #goldleaf #gildedart #gilded #westernmichigan https://www.instagram.com/p/B5Fo8xxnFW2/?igshid=bhgkqtj7nwi4

[peachy-keen-glam-queen]

IMPORTANT: PREDATOR ALERT, PLEASE READ IF ABLE

TW: Sexual abuse, emotional abuse

. . . . . . . . . . .

I've spent a long time trying to figure out the best way to go about making this post, or whether to make it at all. I've spent months sifting through my memories, trying to find some way around the conclusions I've landed at again and again. I've been scared. I've been scared of retaliation for speaking out, and I've been scared of trusting my own memories and making accusations towards innocent people. I've ran through what happened to me again and again, and in the end the conclusion I've come to is this: I don't want to make this post. I want to forget these people and what they took from me. I want to move on. But I can't do that until I tell this story. I know at least one of my abusers is still an active member of the Kalamazoo queer community, and another is working in a position which gives her leverage over vulnerable LGBT folks. I can't in good conscience move on without making a statement so that others in a community that I care about so much can be informed and stay safe.

About a year ago, I met Aoi Fukuyama. I had just broken up with my long-term ex of four years, and was in a very dark, very vulnerable place. I thought she was what I needed then. She was an older, more experienced trans woman. She was a photographer, an artist, and she was confident and charismatic and cool. We went on a date. I thought it went well. On that date, I told her that I wasn't comfortable doing anything sexual that night, and probably wouldn't be for a long time after. We went back to her place. She gave me pot. She gave me a few ciders. She began to kiss me. Soon enough, she was penetrating me.

At the time, I thought what happened was fine. It wasn't until much later, after everything else happened, that the red flags began to pop up. Well, that's not strictly true. I had some doubts, but I brushed them away because I wasn't ready to deal with that shit on top of everything else I was going through. I'm hesitant to ascribe the label of sexual assault to this incident, as in the moment I did consent and I recanted my previous statement about not wanting sex. Still, the circumstances under which I consented were undoubtedly coercive and emotionally manipulative. That said, if that was all, I'd likely leave it there. Bad hookups happen. It's what came after that made me realize that first instance was more than a simple bad hookup.

Later that night, Aoi asked me to be part of a photography project she was working on. She was doing a series where she photographed the parts of womens' bodies that they were most insecure about. I voiced my discomfort, but she was insistent, and convinced me that it would be a good way to boost my confidence about my body. She proceeded to groom me into taking nude photographs. Over three nights we met late in the on-campus photo studio. All throughout the process she kept telling me how beautiful I was, how my body was the most beautiful she had ever photographed. She kept kissing me between shoots. In retrospect, it couldn't have been more obvious what was happening, but I trusted her because I trust far too easily. After all, she was a photographer. She was a professional. She cut off contact with me as soon as she was done taking the nudes, but she proceeded to use them for her class project. She also posted the pictures, the pictures that were specifically of the parts of my body that I'm most insecure about, on Tumblr without my consent.

At the time, I was in denial about what had happened to me. Friends voices their concern, but I shut them down. After all, it was my fault for letting myself get manipulated so easily. I had obviously done something wrong.

It was shortly after Aoi was out of my life that I met Finn. Once again, in my vulnerable state I thought they were what I needed. Using similar tactics to Aoi, they proceeded to manipulate me into a sexual relationship that lasted several weeks. They constantly bombarded me with compliments, telling me how good I was, how beautiful I was. and used those compliments to pressure me into repeated sexual encounters. Once again, it was what I wanted to hear and thought I needed to hear. I let myself get used again when it was obvious that I was only being used sexually, and when they decided they were done with me, I blamed myself. It wasn't until after the "relationship" ended that I became aware of the type of person they are, seeing the many red flags that had popped up for the first time. They've also admitted to lying about people within the community that they don't like in order to sabotage their reputation. A previous ex has accused them of rape, though I do not know the details and it would not be my place to share them if I did.

I've been hesitant to make this statement because it took me so long to process this abuse as abuse. After all, it's been almost a year, so it must be all in my head, right? That's what I've tried to tell myself for months. In the end, this is what I believe happened to me, and I've decided to trust myself. I'm sure this won't be enough details for some of you. I thought about going into deeper detail, but that's a whole lot of emotional labor to waste on people who probably won't believe me either way. I'm sure the time gap will make some of you think I'm lying. It doesn't matter. If I'm going to start moving on from this, I need to tell my truth. What y'all do with that truth is up to you. Now, I can hopefully start to move on.

I don't want anyone to confront either of them on my behalf. I'm already terrified of retaliation, but I couldn't not make this post. As far as I know, Aoi is still working as a photographer. If she's abused that position once as she did with me, then I believe that she likely has used it or will use it that way again. The last I knew, Finn and Aoi are dating, and as Finn still lives in Kalamazoo, that puts two people I know to be dangerous and predatory in the immediate orbit of Kzoo's queer community, a community that is extremely important to me. Finn is active on this website as “Cautionrat”, and while I believe Aoi still uses tumblr, I do not feel comfortable searching for her current URL.  I feel like it's my responsibility to make this known so people can be informed and stay safe.

If you've read this, thank you so much. This was one of the most difficult things I've ever had to write, and I've been putting it off for a long, long time. Stay fantastic, fam.

[nyfacurrent]

Introducing | 2018 Murray Reich Distinguished Artist Award Recipients

Sarah Draney, Rick Klauber, Reeva Potoff, and Kay WalkingStick will each receive an unrestricted cash award of $12,000.

The New York Foundation for the Arts (NYFA) is proud to announce the 2018 recipients of the Murray Reich Distinguished Artist Award, which was established in 2015 to recognize artistic excellence and provide resources to mature visual artists with a long history of creative practice. This year’s winners—Sarah Draney, Rick Klauber, Reeva Potoff, and Kay WalkingStick—will each receive an unrestricted cash award of $12,000. 

With the support of an anonymous donor, NYFA created this annual award to enable artists with a long history of creative practice to pursue deeper investigations or new explorations that can inform and enrich their work. It has been developed in memory of the artist Murray Reich, a New York-based painter who also had a highly regarded career as a professor of art at Bard College.

Michael L. Royce, NYFA's Executive Director, said: "Artists over 50 represent a vital part of our artist community, and we're thrilled to recognize Sarah Draney, Rick Klauber, Reeva Potoff, and Kay WalkingStick with unrestricted cash grants that can help them open up new possibilities in their work. Thank you to our generous donor for providing support to these artists and continuing to honor the distinguished legacy of Murray Reich through this award."

Recipient Bios

Sarah Draney had her first exhibition in 1962 at Bard College. Since then, her work has been shown widely at venues including 55 Mercer Street Gallery; A.I.R. Gallery; Byrdcliffe, Woodstock, NY; Ceres Gallery; Contemporary Arts Center and Taft Museum, Cincinnati, OH; Davis and Hall Gallery and Time and Space Gallery, Hudson, NY; Gallery 128; Greenwich House; Grey Art Gallery; Nancy Hoffman Gallery; Indianapolis Museum of Art; Irish Arts Center; Lunds Konstall, Lund, Sweden; Orlando Museum of Art; Project Space 209, Stone Ridge, NY; Thomas Segal Gallery, Boston, MA; Vassar College; and Wired Gallery, High Falls, NY; among many others. She has been awarded residencies at the MacDowell Colony and Yaddo, and has taught at Pratt Institute and the Feminist Art Institute in New York.

Rick Klauber was born in New York, NY in 1950. He studied with Murray Reich and Jim Sullivan at Bard College, Annandale-on-Hudson, NY. During that time, he worked for and apprenticed with both Helen Frankenthaler and Robert Motherwell. Since 1975, when Robert Motherwell sponsored his one-person exhibition at Artists Space in New York, Klauber has had numerous one-person shows including: Howard Scott Gallery, New York, NY; Amelie A. Wallace Gallery, Old Westbury, NY; Galerie Huber Winter, Vienna, Austria; Brenda Taylor Gallery, New York, NY; Galerie Wolfram Cornelissen, Gerogeborn, Germany; Universal Fine Objects and Long Point Gallery, Provincetown, MA; and Oscarsson-Hood Gallery, New York, NY. He has participated in numerous group shows including: Albert Merola Gallery, Provincetown, MA; White Columns, New York, NY; Threadwaxing Space, New York, NY; Watermill Center Benefit Exhibition, Watermill, NY; the "International Biennial" at Janos Xantus Museum, Gyor, Hungary; and Universal Fine Arts, Provincetown, MA. His work is included in many private and corporate collections and can be found in The Provincetown Art Association and Museum; The Witherspoon Art Museum, Greensboro, NC; Reading Public Museum, Reading, PA; and The Arkansas Art Center, Little Rock, AK. For the past 21 years, Klauber has taught at Kingsborough Community College, CUNY, Brooklyn, NY. He has previously taught at Pratt Institute and at Parsons School of Design at The New School in New York. He lives with his wife, Ryn Maartens, in New York.

Reeva Potoff moved to the SoHo neighborhood of New York when it was still illegal to live there, after receiving an MFA degree from Yale University. Potoff would often look out the window in the dead of night and see women working until dawn at their sewing machines. Potoff and many fellow artists joined the Artworkers Coalition or helped out in the South Bronx, and joined feminist consciousness-raising groups. The artist's studio was on Mercer Street in a building that bundled and sold scrap paper; Potoff made all of her early sculptures out of the cardboard that she retrieved. The pieces were based on gathering visual documentation (photos, drawings, and models) from the cliffs that she found along highways and coastal areas. Potoff's first solo exhibition was at The Meisel Gallery in New York; she later exhibited at The Museum of Modern Art and received fellowships from the American Academy in Rome and the National Endowment for the Arts. Potoff has taught at Bennington College and Columbia University, and now teaches at Pratt Institute. Potoff continues to have an interest in nature and grows and photographs mold and the visual material it generates, which provides the basis for large-scale inkjet prints. The prints are scaled for the wall that they are installed on, and the insects that populate the prints are prints as well. Potoff lives and works in the same loft she first settled in, and is still a feminist.

Kay WalkingStick has had over 30 solo shows in the United States and Europe. Her work is in the permanent collections of the Metropolitan Museum, New York; the Museum of Canada, Ottawa; the Israel Museum, Jerusalem; The Newark Museum, Newark; the Whitney Museum of American Art, New York; and many other museums across the United States. June Kelly Gallery represents her work in New York. WalkingStick taught painting and drawing to graduate and undergraduate students at Cornell University for 17 years, where she is an Emerita Professor. WalkingStick was given an honorary doctorate by Pratt Institute and by Arcadia University. She is a fellow of the National Academy of Design. In 2015, her retrospective of 75 paintings and drawings covering the years from 1970 to 2015 opened at the Smithsonian, National Museum of the American Indian in Washington, D.C. Since closing in September of 2016, the exhibition has traveled to various venues across the country including the Gilcrease Museum, Tulsa; the Montclair Museum in Montclair, NJ; The Art Institute in Dayton, Ohio; the Kalamazoo Art Museum, Kalamazoo, MI; and the Heard Museum, Phoenix, AZ. The show was listed by Hyperallergic as one of the best 15 exhibitions to open nationwide in 2016. WalkingStick and her husband, the artist Dirk Bach, live in Easton, PA.

About Murray Reich

Born and raised in Coney Island and the south Bronx, Murray Reich (1932-2012) attended City College and received his M.F.A. degree in Painting from Boston University. Following his first solo show in New York at Max Hutchinson Gallery, Reich was awarded a Solomon R. Guggenheim Fellowship. Reich received other fellowships, including one from the National Endowment for the Arts. His work was exhibited in two Whitney Annuals and at the American Academy of Arts and Letters as well as in solo shows and group exhibitions. Reich was Professor Emeritus of Painting at Bard College in Annandale-on-Hudson, New York, where he taught for 25 years. He served on the faculty of the Graduate Program in Art at Hunter College, also in New York. He was the inaugural director of Tanglewood’s Summer Program in Art in Massachusetts, and also taught at Boston University. He lived and worked in New York City, Provincetown, and Mt. Tremper in upstate New York. For images of his work and a longer profile, please visit www.murrayreich.com.

The Murray Reich Distinguished Artist Award was created to provide resources to established visual artists above 50 who are chosen for artistic excellence. With the support of an anonymous donor, NYFA has created this award to enable artists with a long history of creative practice to pursue deeper investigations or new explorations that can inform and enrich their work. Learn more on NYFA.org.

Images from top: Kay WalkingStick (Murray Reich Distinguished Artist ’18), “Eastern Slope,” 2017, oil on wood panel, and Rick Klauber (Murray Reich Distinguished Artist ’18), “Wall Flower,” 2015, acrylic on wood shims.

[sinceileftyoublog]

Helen Money Live Preview: 7/9, Twitch

Photo by Natalie Escobedo

BY JORDAN MAINZER

I’ve been eagerly awaiting experimental cellist Alison Chesley’s new Helen Money album ever since I heard 2016′s mammoth Become Zero, and in March, she finally followed it up with Atomic (Thrill Jockey). Written after her parents passed away and inspired by time spent in Northern California with her siblings, as well as Lucretian ideas of inter-connectivity, it’s a comparatively solemn affair, but no less affecting. The clarity of her compositions is bolstered by collaborator Will Thomas’ modular electronics, and each track juxtaposes layers of plucked and bowed cello with propulsive percussion and crackling noise. Yet, Atomic is remarkably varied. Rounded bursts of cello on opener “Midnight” contrast repeated 3-note plucking on “Understory”, while Chesley’s sludgy riffing on “Coil” (over panning, clattering percussion) recalls her earlier, metal-adjacent material. And following “Coil” is its polar opposite, “Coppe”, with Chesley writing for the harp for the first time ever. Overall, Chesley’s sheets of cello provide what effectively sounds like an entire symphony on tracks like “Understory”, “Brave One”, loop-heavy “Redshift” and droning closer “Many Arms”; it makes the faint industrial thuds of “Nemesis”, eerie electro-acoustic tones of “Something Holy”, and drum sounds of “Marrow” stand out even more. Above everything else, Atomic cements Chesley as a master of space and contrast, versatile in her ability to simultaneously overwhelm and tranquilize.

Chesley performs as part of Experimental Sound Studio’s nightly The Quarantine Concerts series. Tonight is all cello, curated by Chicago player Nora Barton, who will give a set as PLANCHETTE. (She released a cool album called around the bend earlier this year that contains an inspired mix of improvised, yet sometimes rhythmic cello, delayed loops, and sampled conversation.) Also performing are Cincinnati’s Kate Wakefield, Kalamazoo’s Jordan Hamilton, Chicago teacher and arranger Kelsee Vandervall, and Uncle Valentine, the project of Philadelphia player Rachel Icenogle.

Atomic by Helen Money

[sixtybysixty]

Fowler Organ Company 2007 Opus XXX - Parchment United Methodist Church, Parchment, MI

This pipe organ has been on my list for awhile.The Fowler Organ Company now tunes our Schantz pipe organ at St. Joseph. I don’t believe I’ve played a Fowler Organ before and this one happens to be close to Battle Creek.

Thursday is my day out of the office and the only day I have free time to make organ visits. However, it’s also a great day for social breakfasts and lunches, doctor appointments, doing stuff around the house, an occasional organ lesson, and doing extra practicing. I was overloaded musically in May due to First Communion at St. Joseph, the St. Joseph choir concert, and my piano studio recital. June started off busy with Ascension on Sunday and 8th grade graduation on Tuesday. Suddenly I realized on Wednesday that I had absolutely nothing planned for Thursday!

I looked online for the church website and found they were open Monday thru Thursday from 9 am to 1 pm. It was 12:30 pm on Wednesday and it was rather short notice to ask to play on Thursday, but there was only one way to find out. I was blessed to have a kind an helpful person named Käthe, answer the phone. She couldn’t think of any reason I shouldn’t be able to play and just needed to clear it with the pastor while I waited briefly on hold. It was one of the easiest and quickest conversations to obtain permission that I recall. I was delighted and excited. Playing different pipe organs still makes me happy! I don’t understand it, but it’s the way it is. And doing it on short notice makes it even better. Multiple phone calls or multiple emails makes me feel like I’m a bother and takes a little bit of the joy away.

I arrived at 10 am on Thursday June 6 and Käthe welcomed me in, escorted me to the sanctuary and went to turn on the lights. I discovered the organ console was locked which surprised her but she went to look for a key. I can always find things to do in Kalamazoo and I wouldn’t be upset to come back another time, but she would feel bad. I’m glad she found the key! I wouldn’t want her to feel bad.

Once the organ was open, I was pleased to be able to play and of course had to turn it on first. Sometimes this can be challenging. It might be in plain sight, or it might be hidden underneath the lowest manual. Sometimes it’s a switch, sometimes a dial, maybe a key. I searched everywhere and couldn’t find anything that looked like it could control the power. I was feeling frustrated to be spending my time this way and really didn’t want to bother Käthe about it. Certainly she wouldn’t know and would need to call and bother the organist. I decided to call the Fowler Organ Company. Surely they could help me! I talked to Mark and he did his best to suggest where to look but I’d already looked there. I was ready to give up when he said that some of their newer installations had the switch on the wall, like a light switch. I looked around and didn’t see anything. Then it occurred to me to look on the wall behind the organ console and there it was! I was in business.

I enjoyed playing this organ. It is a small two manual with 19 ranks, similar to ours at St. Joseph, which has 21 ranks. I was very comfortable choosing registration for the pieces I brought to play. 

I’m planning to take the American Guild of Organists Service Playing Test later this year to obtain the Service Playing Certificate. I haven’t had much time to work on those required pieces with all the other music that has been the priority this year. I’m hoping to make more organ visits this summer and if I practice those pieces wherever I go, in addition to regular practice at home, I may just master them before fall. 

The hour went by quickly and it was time to end the special time with this organ. I thanked Käthe and said goodbye. One last stop outside to take a photo of the church before being on my way.

70x70-14

[owensrhodes]

Our 20 Favorite Ideas for Outdoor Living Spaces

One area of the home to come the furthest in terms of design over the years is the outdoor living space. These were once just spaces to place a patio furniture set and maybe a grill. But these days, people are including televisions, entire kitchens (including the kitchen sink) and dining areas fit for a restaurant. Many outdoor living spaces have fire pits that are works of art, and sometimes even full fireplaces. So if you’re ready to update your outdoor living space in a big way, take a look at the inspiring photos below. You might just find an idea for your next backyard remodel.

Outdoor living spaces with a TV

One of the key ways in which outdoor living spaces have evolved is the inclusion of technology right in the backyard. Thanks to the modern convenience of flat screens, it’s easier than ever to hang a television anywhere. There are several different ways to make a television work in an outdoor space, though it’s important to install them in enclosed spaces to guard them from the weather. Take a look below for some of the best ways to make use of a television in an outdoor space.

Outdoor TVs fit well over fireplaces. Image: MDD Homes

Walls and roofing protect outdoor TVs from the elements. Image: McLaughlin Landscape Construction

Design elements like silver frames add style to outdoor TVs. Image: Hi Frame Design

Some outdoor TVs go in a TV cabinet to keep them protected from the elements. Image: Colorworks Studio

It’s also possible to hang the TV right from the ceiling of a patio space. Image: Designs by Dawn

Outdoor kitchen spaces

Nowadays, outdoor spaces feature entire kitchens. This means there are spaces for small refrigerators, a variety of cooktops and sinks outdoors.

Modern outdoor kitchen appliances also tend to come in stainless steel, since that makes the appliances more resistant to the weather and other wear and tear. A common design aesthetic is to put stainless steel in stone or brick. The rustic stone and modern stainless steel combination creates interesting contrast. The stone also helps anchor the appliances in place and gives them a more outdoorsy look.

Stainless steel and stone create an attractive contrast. Image: Frankel Building Group

Appliances can be intergrated into stone. Image: DFW Improved

Even sinks may be worked into a stone counter. Image: Ettore Masonry

Some spaces achieve the outdoor kitchen feel by simply being placed behind a partition that can be opened and closed depending on the weather. Image: Architect Your Home

Outdoor cooktops are perfect for large gatherings. Image: FireMagic

Outdoor fireplaces and fire pits

A classic mainstay of an outdoor space is the fire pit. Many of us have spent fond evenings relaxing around the fire as the heat of the day dissipates. However, fire pits have adopted an artistic bent over the years, looking more like “fire features” than traditional fire pits.

Another development is taking the traditional fireplace from inside the home and placing it outside. These usually provide seating areas and a backdrop for TVs.

Fireplaces with bench seating work well outdoors. Image: DRM Design Group

Some fire pits have a more sleek, modern design. Image: Harrell Remodeling

Other fire pits keep it rustic with natural stone surroundings. Image: Alex Custom Homes

This modern fire pit uses unique decorative paneling. Image: Kalamazoo Outdoor Gourmet

Some fire pits make use of walls for an interesting design. Image: California Home Design

Outdoor dining spaces

Perhaps it wouldn’t be a full outdoor living space without bringing the dining room outside, too. Outdoor dining spaces these days are so detailed that they look like they belong indoors — that is, until you look closer and realize that everything is designed to stand up to the elements.

Some outdoor living spaces boast long, full tables similar to what you would see in a dining room. Others make use of bar areas. Still others resemble kitchen islands. With so many options surrounding space and materials, the outdoor dining space is truly customizable.

Whole dining spaces with upscale furniture are now outside. Image: Shapiro/Didway

Some outdoor dining spaces take the bar approach. Image: Ken Linsteadt Architects

Outdoor dining can also keep it natural with wooden furniture; in addition, the string lights are a fun touch. Image: Chelsea Construction Corporation

Wicker is also becoming more stylish and intricate in its designs. Image: Thompson Custom Homes

Some outdoor dining spaces keep it chic, yet rustic. Image: Villa + Villa

If you’re looking to remodel your backyard, options for outdoor living spaces are nearly endless. Did you find inspiration in any of the outdoor living spaces above? Tell us about it in the comments!

The post Our 20 Favorite Ideas for Outdoor Living Spaces appeared first on Freshome.com.

[cessanderson]

Our 20 Favorite Ideas for Outdoor Living Spaces https://ift.tt/2Ki2YQo

One area of the home to come the furthest in terms of design over the years is the outdoor living space. These were once just spaces to place a patio furniture set and maybe a grill. But these days, people are including televisions, entire kitchens (including the kitchen sink) and dining areas fit for a restaurant. Many outdoor living spaces have fire pits that are works of art, and sometimes even full fireplaces. So if you’re ready to update your outdoor living space in a big way, take a look at the inspiring photos below. You might just find an idea for your next backyard remodel.

Outdoor living spaces with a TV

One of the key ways in which outdoor living spaces have evolved is the inclusion of technology right in the backyard. Thanks to the modern convenience of flat screens, it’s easier than ever to hang a television anywhere. There are several different ways to make a television work in an outdoor space, though it’s important to install them in enclosed spaces to guard them from the weather. Take a look below for some of the best ways to make use of a television in an outdoor space.

Outdoor TVs fit well over fireplaces. Image: MDD Homes

Walls and roofing protect outdoor TVs from the elements. Image: McLaughlin Landscape Construction

Design elements like silver frames add style to outdoor TVs. Image: Hi Frame Design

Some outdoor TVs go in a TV cabinet to keep them protected from the elements. Image: Colorworks Studio

It’s also possible to hang the TV right from the ceiling of a patio space. Image: Designs by Dawn

Outdoor kitchen spaces

Nowadays, outdoor spaces feature entire kitchens. This means there are spaces for small refrigerators, a variety of cooktops and sinks outdoors.

Modern outdoor kitchen appliances also tend to come in stainless steel, since that makes the appliances more resistant to the weather and other wear and tear. A common design aesthetic is to put stainless steel in stone or brick. The rustic stone and modern stainless steel combination creates interesting contrast. The stone also helps anchor the appliances in place and gives them a more outdoorsy look.

Stainless steel and stone create an attractive contrast. Image: Frankel Building Group

Appliances can be intergrated into stone. Image: DFW Improved

Even sinks may be worked into a stone counter. Image: Ettore Masonry

Some spaces achieve the outdoor kitchen feel by simply being placed behind a partition that can be opened and closed depending on the weather. Image: Architect Your Home

Outdoor cooktops are perfect for large gatherings. Image: FireMagic

Outdoor fireplaces and fire pits

A classic mainstay of an outdoor space is the fire pit. Many of us have spent fond evenings relaxing around the fire as the heat of the day dissipates. However, fire pits have adopted an artistic bent over the years, looking more like “fire features” than traditional fire pits.

Another development is taking the traditional fireplace from inside the home and placing it outside. These usually provide seating areas and a backdrop for TVs.

Fireplaces with bench seating work well outdoors. Image: DRM Design Group

Some fire pits have a more sleek, modern design. Image: Harrell Remodeling

Other fire pits keep it rustic with natural stone surroundings. Image: Alex Custom Homes

This modern fire pit uses unique decorative paneling. Image: Kalamazoo Outdoor Gourmet

Some fire pits make use of walls for an interesting design. Image: California Home Design

Outdoor dining spaces

Perhaps it wouldn’t be a full outdoor living space without bringing the dining room outside, too. Outdoor dining spaces these days are so detailed that they look like they belong indoors — that is, until you look closer and realize that everything is designed to stand up to the elements.

Some outdoor living spaces boast long, full tables similar to what you would see in a dining room. Others make use of bar areas. Still others resemble kitchen islands. With so many options surrounding space and materials, the outdoor dining space is truly customizable.

Whole dining spaces with upscale furniture are now outside. Image: Shapiro/Didway

Some outdoor dining spaces take the bar approach. Image: Ken Linsteadt Architects

Outdoor dining can also keep it natural with wooden furniture; in addition, the string lights are a fun touch. Image: Chelsea Construction Corporation

Wicker is also becoming more stylish and intricate in its designs. Image: Thompson Custom Homes

Some outdoor dining spaces keep it chic, yet rustic. Image: Villa + Villa

If you’re looking to remodel your backyard, options for outdoor living spaces are nearly endless. Did you find inspiration in any of the outdoor living spaces above? Tell us about it in the comments!

The post Our 20 Favorite Ideas for Outdoor Living Spaces appeared first on Freshome.com.

Michelle Honeyager

[finkanie]

Red Arrow Soccer Club - Fall 2023 Photos Now Booking! → © finkanie photography

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Red Arrow Soccer Club photos are now booking! Sessions will be hosted at Finkanie Photography in McGillen’s Crossing, 56310 City Center Circle, Mattawan, MI - next to Pizza Hut (entrance is on the road side of the building - don’t get lost!) :)

Sessions will be M-F starting October 9, 2023 and run through October 17, 2023! DON’T MISS OUT! No makeup times will be added, so be sure to schedule your time right away and mark your calendar!

To book your session, click here

[jovialsoulinfluencer]

Our 20 Favorite Ideas for Outdoor Living Spaces

One area of the home to come the furthest in terms of design over the years is the outdoor living space. These were once just spaces to place a patio furniture set and maybe a grill. But these days, people are including televisions, entire kitchens (including the kitchen sink) and dining areas fit for a restaurant. Many outdoor living spaces have fire pits that are works of art, and sometimes even full fireplaces. So if you’re ready to update your outdoor living space in a big way, take a look at the inspiring photos below. You might just find an idea for your next backyard remodel.

Outdoor living spaces with a TV

One of the key ways in which outdoor living spaces have evolved is the inclusion of technology right in the backyard. Thanks to the modern convenience of flat screens, it’s easier than ever to hang a television anywhere. There are several different ways to make a television work in an outdoor space, though it’s important to install them in enclosed spaces to guard them from the weather. Take a look below for some of the best ways to make use of a television in an outdoor space.

Outdoor TVs fit well over fireplaces. Image: MDD Homes

Walls and roofing protect outdoor TVs from the elements. Image: McLaughlin Landscape Construction

Design elements like silver frames add style to outdoor TVs. Image: Hi Frame Design

Some outdoor TVs go in a TV cabinet to keep them protected from the elements. Image: Colorworks Studio

It’s also possible to hang the TV right from the ceiling of a patio space. Image: Designs by Dawn

Outdoor kitchen spaces

Nowadays, outdoor spaces feature entire kitchens. This means there are spaces for small refrigerators, a variety of cooktops and sinks outdoors.

Modern outdoor kitchen appliances also tend to come in stainless steel, since that makes the appliances more resistant to the weather and other wear and tear. A common design aesthetic is to put stainless steel in stone or brick. The rustic stone and modern stainless steel combination creates interesting contrast. The stone also helps anchor the appliances in place and gives them a more outdoorsy look.

Stainless steel and stone create an attractive contrast. Image: Frankel Building Group

Appliances can be intergrated into stone. Image: DFW Improved

Even sinks may be worked into a stone counter. Image: Ettore Masonry

Some spaces achieve the outdoor kitchen feel by simply being placed behind a partition that can be opened and closed depending on the weather. Image: Architect Your Home

Outdoor cooktops are perfect for large gatherings. Image: FireMagic

Outdoor fireplaces and fire pits

A classic mainstay of an outdoor space is the fire pit. Many of us have spent fond evenings relaxing around the fire as the heat of the day dissipates. However, fire pits have adopted an artistic bent over the years, looking more like “fire features” than traditional fire pits.

Another development is taking the traditional fireplace from inside the home and placing it outside. These usually provide seating areas and a backdrop for TVs.

Fireplaces with bench seating work well outdoors. Image: DRM Design Group

Some fire pits have a more sleek, modern design. Image: Harrell Remodeling

Other fire pits keep it rustic with natural stone surroundings. Image: Alex Custom Homes

This modern fire pit uses unique decorative paneling. Image: Kalamazoo Outdoor Gourmet

Some fire pits make use of walls for an interesting design. Image: California Home Design

Outdoor dining spaces

Perhaps it wouldn’t be a full outdoor living space without bringing the dining room outside, too. Outdoor dining spaces these days are so detailed that they look like they belong indoors — that is, until you look closer and realize that everything is designed to stand up to the elements.

Some outdoor living spaces boast long, full tables similar to what you would see in a dining room. Others make use of bar areas. Still others resemble kitchen islands. With so many options surrounding space and materials, the outdoor dining space is truly customizable.

Whole dining spaces with upscale furniture are now outside. Image: Shapiro/Didway

Some outdoor dining spaces take the bar approach. Image: Ken Linsteadt Architects

Outdoor dining can also keep it natural with wooden furniture; in addition, the string lights are a fun touch. Image: Chelsea Construction Corporation

Wicker is also becoming more stylish and intricate in its designs. Image: Thompson Custom Homes

Some outdoor dining spaces keep it chic, yet rustic. Image: Villa + Villa

If you’re looking to remodel your backyard, options for outdoor living spaces are nearly endless. Did you find inspiration in any of the outdoor living spaces above? Tell us about it in the comments!

The post Our 20 Favorite Ideas for Outdoor Living Spaces appeared first on Freshome.com.

from https://freshome.com/outdoor-living-spaces/ via Our 20 Favorite Ideas for Outdoor Living Spaces

[corwinideas]

It’s been a little bot since I’ve posted here, and that’s because the last month and some change have been so, incredibly, ridiculously full of activity, driving, and networking that I feel like I’ve barely been able to slow down enought to change my underwear, not to mention write a whole blog post.

However, this post has been sitting in drafts since the beginning of May. Other stuff just kept on happening, and I kept on waiting to post it. So, here comes the whirlwind update with lots and lots of photos!

A little over a month ago I was pushing hard to get back to work and reality after a whirlwind weekend involving 40 hours of driving, two days of competition awesome-ness, 4 states, another country one whole thesis reading and a fair amount of laughter (plus a whole audiobook).

It all started on a Wednesday evening. For the last few years, I’ve been quietly working on my Master’s Degree in Creative Writing. It’s actually the reason this whole blog came to be and has given me a lot of neat opportunities. It’s also been a fair amount of work! But, all in good fun. That Wednesday evening was my Thesis Reading. It was the thing I’ve been working on since the first class I took at Mt. Mary and I had to read part of it to a room full of people to see if they liked it.

The general consensus was positive. But you can check it out yourself! Here’s a link to the full, glorious escapade on YouTube!

It was an evening full of words, stories, and neat ideas. I was one of four people reading and all the readers did a great job!  Everyone told me it was great, so we’ll go with that. I’m always my own worst critic, so you’ll have to take a gander at it and let me know what you think.

After this reading, I had a celebratory beer and wings (literature!), then straight into the car to begin the epic drive (with my Dad!) to Quebec City, Canada. It was a 19-hour drive and we were starting it at 10:00pm.

It was a VERY long day.

After an eye-searing 27 hours or so, which did involve a pit stop in Kalamazoo (Thanks, Blake!) We were in Quebec City!

The next morning we were up and exploring the city a bit. We found some pretty cool stuff.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Once we finished our wandering and had some pretty kickass crepes for breakfast, it was time to get to work.

The whole reason for going to Canada was to compete in and photograph/video/write about the Quebec Open. This is a tournament that has been something of a rising star in the NASKA circuit for the last few years. The whole event was fantastic, and I loved it. If you want to know exactly what I thought of it, check out the SportMartialArts.com article here! Then look at some photos. I took some of them. I can’t tell you which ones, but lets just go with “the cool ones.”

I didn’t do too bad myself in the runoffs, but I also didn’t make it to the nighttime stage. Which is where the real glory of the Quebec Open struts its stuff.

Just look at that!

It was like something out of a movie and it was completely fantastic. For my first time, it was everything I was hoping for and a bit more. There were phenomenal competitors and the entire event ran incredibly smoothly and with a great sense of camaraderie. Plus, I had more than a little fun with all the staff at SportMartialArts.com and managed to have a great time with my Dad as well. This was actually his first time coming to a big tounament like this with me and seeing how it all runs and works from the non-spectator side. We had some good talks.

After the night show, I jumped into the car, picked Dad up from the hotel, and we drove through the night to get back to Madison.

All said and done, we put something like 3,000 miles on the car in 4 days. It was a whirlwind of gas stations, a Jack Reacher Audiobook, and a whole lot of conversation about every topic under the sun, and then a few that no light of day has ever seen.

It was absolutely fantastic.

The thing about crazy long road trips, however, is 9 hours or so after I got back to my apartment, I was back in the car and driving to work. Hello Monday, I sincerely don’t like you today!

But, being able to talk about both my tournament, the things I have learned, and the great competition I was able to be a part of, is something that I always think is invaluable to me, and to my students.

Fast forward a few days. It’s now Sunday. Lia and I have our first day together in what feels like 100 years and we bump around Madison on a gloriously sunny day, shopping, exploring, and generally being a couple together. Something that doesn’t happen nearly as often as it should (darn schedules!).

And we were able to have this moment on a sunny day over some local beer.

We had another beer. 

First grey hair! We laughed, we almost cried, and we had another round.

Fast forward another week and I’m at the Infinity National Championships.

Y’know. Doing karate stuff.

I could tell you all about it, but I ALSO wrote an article for them, which you can find here.

So, y’know, read that instead…

Last year I’d torn my hamstring and wasn’t able to compete. This year I was fully healthy and had a great time cimpetiting! I was able to snag first places in all of my divisions and wona  spot in the night show. Which Mr. Jacob Wolfmann has made an amazing video about. Check out Martial Studios for some really top notch work.

This tournament is always a lot of fun for several reasons.

It’s down the street and I can relax and not worry about lots of travel.

Many people there I’ve known for 10+ years. So, we just laugh a lot and do all the things we tell our students NOT to do at tournaments.

It’s got some great competition.

This year delivered on everything and then a little more.

And there’s the InfiniGreen!

I wasn’t able to pull the win in the finals, I did, however, have a whole lot of fun and hang out with some pretty great martial artists.

But, this wasn’t the end of my adventures. Because there was one thing looming on the horizon that I had been quietly planning and not prepping for AT ALL for a few months.

  We bought a family of boxes!

Nah, we moved.

Across the street.

Due to reasons of being less money. There was an apartment across the street that was opening up and we got a lot more bang for our buck. So, we moveds across the street and it involded something like 12 volunteers, two hand carts, a lot of swearing and donating a whole pile of stuff (which felt AWESOME).

And now we’re in the new place and we love it. And I’ve made the promise to never move again until the next time.

Nobody else thought that was funny, either.

But there was yet more going on. This past weekend was something very special.

I’ve also had a crew of candidates working their tails off at the dojo since February. This past weekend they pulled it all together and put on one heck of a test to earn their black belts. It was an absolutely wonderful thing to be a part of, and I couldn’t be prouder of all of them.

  I also graduated with my M.A. I would write more about it, but I honestly can’t remember where it falls in the midst of all the other stuff.

Despite all of this. In the face of all of the activity, accomplishments, adventures, and driving. There are still the moments where I don’t feel it’s enough. There is always so much more out there waiting for me to get to it. The other night I was thinking about the concept of Sonder.

Sonder is a neat idea. Let’s say you’re in a plane, looking down on a city through the window. There are all the lights and cars and busy activity that reminds you so much of an anthill. Sonder is the realiztion that each of those tiny little specks is another human with a life as rich, and complex, and varied as yours. It really snaps into focus the breathtaking complexity of humanity and has a way of grounding you (me, anyway) in the idea that we’re all a little lost at sea and just doing the best we can.

I was applying this idea of ridiculous complexity and depth to most things I seem to come across. Every adventure I listed up there had so many more facets that had to be taken care of and handled before I could compete, or go, or achieve. The final culmination is a molecule thin limning of sparkle over the enormous amount of work, effort, stress, and pressure that was required to get there.

It’s simultaneously wonderful and depressing. As are so many things in the world. I think of that like an emotional umami.

But, I digress.

Anyway, especially over the last month this conceptual Sonder has been a thing that I’ve appreciated more and more. Becuase it doesn’t just apply to my achievments. But to everything else. Throughout all of these adventures I’ve been watching huge efforts and sky high dreams become realized and I think about all the work that dedicated crew of people had to do to get there.

It’s really cool, inspiring, and more than a little humbling.

So, to all the people out there working on their dreams, or even on something that’s just hard. It’s worth it. And that depth and feeling of drowning that you might sometimes hit? It’s not just you, we’re all right there with you. Keep on keeping on and share that idea with the world.

I know I’m excited.

A List of Ingredients to a Jam Packed Month: Literature, Karate, Extreme Roadtripping, More Karate, Graduation, Moving and then some Karate. It's been a little bot since I've posted here, and that's because the last month and some change have been so, incredibly, ridiculously full of activity, driving, and networking that I feel like I've barely been able to slow down enought to change my underwear, not to mention write a whole blog post.

[alexakarabin]

My camera is on the fritz, and I can’t, for the life of me, take a good photo! But I wanted to share that the @naturewalkstudio show was amazing! Thank you to everyone who came out! It literally warms my heart and soul, and makes every day worth it! I will be at the @kalamazooinstituteofarts show this weekend, and I will be at @kalamazoonaturecenter on December 7th. I will also have work at Ninth Wave Studio on December 6th, although, I unfortunately won’t be able to attend. I will have family representing me there. ❤️🐝 . . . . . . . #kalamazoo #insect #nature #beekeeper #inktober #batart #artshow #handmade #womanmade #womanartist #moonart #insectart #goldleaf #golded #artforyourlife #arthop #kalamazooarthop #kalamazooartist #chicagoartist #naturecenter #kalamazoonaturecenter #kalamazooinstituteofarts #botanicalart #beeart #deagonflyart #butterflyart (at Nature Walk) https://www.instagram.com/p/B5DWmNNnKTP/?igshid=azhf0lidz5op

[grohebathtaps]

Nice Modern Bathroom Design photos

Nice Modern Bathroom Design photos

Check out these modern bathroom design images:

Urbane Residents / Center / Studio / Natalie Image by urbaneapts

Urbane Residents / Natalie Urbane Apartments on Center BY: KENNY CORBIN

Paragon Properties / Dover Hill Image by Paragon Apartments Paragon Properties / Dover Hill / Model / 4520 Dover Hills Drive Kalamazoo, MI 49009

[galleykitchendesigns]

Nice Modern Bathroom Design photos

Nice Modern Bathroom Design photos

Check out these modern bathroom design images:

Urbane Residents / Center / Studio / Natalie Image by urbaneapts

Urbane Residents / Natalie Urbane Apartments on Center BY: KENNY CORBIN

Paragon Properties / Dover Hill Image by Paragon Apartments Paragon Properties / Dover Hill / Model / 4520 Dover Hills Drive Kalamazoo, MI 49009