As the gray of winter descends, let's embrace the breathtaking beauty of autumn in Ann Arbor. It sure beats reflecting on the heinous events of 2020! And really, there's no place prettier than the U-M campus in the fall. Enjoy these literary interpretations of the season, along with some gorgeous photos by Michigan Photography's Scott Soderberg.

Ann Arbor welcomes a monumental icon to State Street, thanks to long-time U-M supporters J. Ira and Nicki Harris. Spanish artist Jaume Plensa created this 25-foot-tall sculpture of an elongated human head with hands covering both eyes, now permanently installed at the museum’s entrance. Share your impressions. (Click on any image to enlarge.)

In September, professors at the Stamps School of Art & Design and the Ford School worked with local partners to transform the Stenn Gallery at the U-M Museum of Art (525 S. State St.) into the state’s first satellite city clerk’s office on a university campus. Nearly 4,000 students had registered by Oct. 23 and more than 4,000 ballots had been returned. (All photos by Michigan Photography's Eric Bronson unless otherwise noted.)

The formal contours of ‘mail art’ developed in the 1960s through the work of pop collagist Ray Johnson and the New York Correspondence School. Autumn Wetli, undergraduate collections librarian at U-M's Shapiro Library, and Mariah Cherem, production librarian at the Ann Arbor District Library, have added a contemporary spin. They are asking ‘mail artists’ to create and send postcards to their future selves, expressing the emotions and experiences of these challenging times. The art (sampled here) will be compiled into a book as part of the Artists’ Books Collection in the Book Arts Studio at the U-M Library. (Click on each image to enlarge.) Submit your mail art by Sept. 30.  

Enjoy Ann Arbor from the rare vantage point of an autonomous drone as the team in Michigan Photography fires up its little flier to capture these unusual shots. (Captions sourced by Claudia Larochelle.)

The streets of Ann Arbor are mostly deserted of late, but East Liberty’s Graffiti Alley is bursting with life. This ever-changing canvas offers a real-time record of our collective experience – in vibrant, vivid color. Black Lives Matter is summer 2020’s dominant theme. (Images: Deborah Holdship; captions sourced by Angelina Brede.)

Every Wolverine has a story about meeting a fellow grad in some far-flung location, all because of the iconic Block M on a cap, a shirt, or a bag. But even here at home, one  might be surprised to learn how many Block Ms are hiding in plain sight. (All images by Michigan Photography.)

COVID-19 may have forced 2020 graduation ceremonies to go virtual but proud Michigan Wolverines, their families, and loved ones still celebrated this milestone in resilient “Go Blue!” style. These jubilant images were posted at #mgograd on Instagram. They are reposted with permission.

The streets of downtown Ann Arbor are mostly deserted these days. But signs of life, resilience, and hope can be found wherever you look. (All images were taken by a masked D. Holdship on Saturday, 4/11/20.)