A Great 2008...

My sincere wishes for a wonderful and prosperous 2008... and peace...

Along Came a Spider...

This photo was taken on a September morning - the day I left for my artist residency program in Glen Arbor. As I was packing my vehicle, my husband came up from getting the newspaper - and told me I just HAD to get down into our front meadow area with my camera and catch the dew-covered spider webs.

I'm truly not fond of creepy crawlies - but they are beautiful in their own little worlds. Fascinating how they can weave amazing patterns between a couple of common weeds! To see the detail - click on the image above.
If anyone out there knows about spiders - please feel free to contact me and let me know what KIND of spider this is! I have no idea. They seem to show up around September. Or perhaps - they become more "visible" in September when the morning dew clings to their webs. I don't seem to notice them during other times of the year.

We Made Elves of Ourselves!

Merry Christmas from Buster, Lucas, Alex and Leo Niedzwiecki!

Watch our Flash movie!

Proudly Protecting Our Snowbanks...

I've been going through a lot of old photographs lately, organizing and archiving them. There are even a number of film images I had scanned for genealogy purposes.

This week, my son's friend from next door came over and saw one photo of me in a frame - from my Army years. He refused to believe I was in the Army! It got me thinking about a few old photos of me from that time period.

So for your complete amusement - here's a photo of me in Battle Creek, Michigan taken about 1990 (?) during "winter training exercises" after a big snow. Most of the people in our battalion had never been on snowshoes or skis before, and it was hilarious.

Let's just say if Battle Creek was attacked that day - we would have lost...

Lakeshore Development Disaster...

This is a disaster in the making - another huge blow to our beloved Lake Michigan:

A developer is threatening to build along 400 acres of sand dunes of the Denison Property near Saugatuck. Oklahoma billionaire Aubrey McClendon now owns the property, after spending $39.5 million to outbid local efforts. McClendon wants to develop the property. Local environmental groups and a large number of Saugatuck residents want to preserve its natural habitat.

Read the full story from WOOD-TV...

Please do your part to help prevent this from happening!
Here are some suggestions from The Concerned Citizens for Saugatuck Dunes State Park website (www.saugatuckdunes.org)

Make Your Voice Heard!

• There are a number of ways you can assist in protecting Saugatuck Dunes State Park. Perhaps the most important is to contact your political representatives. Call and write Laketown Township officials, the Allegan County Commissioners, Holland City Council members, our State Representatives and State Senator, as well as officials at the DNR. Write letters to the newspapers.
• Elected officials pay close attention to these letters and to newspaper editorials. According to the Sierra Club's activist network, letters are preferable to phone calls. Faxes and Emails are least effective. But do whatever you can!
• There are many broader issues of Great Lakes water and land use which are beyond the scope of this group, but which we encourage you to raise.
• Please encourage 3 friends to write brief letters too. You are making a difference! Please mail copies of all your letters to Concerned Citizens for Saugatuck Dunes State Park.

Contact information for Government Officials

Northeast Advance Article...

I have a very nice article in this week's Advance newspaper...

Rockford Photographer
Featured at GR Gallery

by Michael Taylor
Monday December 17, 2007, 11:11 AM

Rockford photographer Stacy Niedzwiecki has won many awards and honors since becoming involved in the world of digital imaging just over six years ago. Her photos have landed her in the Glen Arbor Art Association's Artist-in-Residence Program and have been published in Whisper in the Woods Nature Journal.

Stacy Niedzwiecki's photography is on display at Grand Rapids First Methodist Church Gallery through January 2008.

Continue Advance Story...

Accelerating Arctic Melt Worries Experts

ACIA / AP
The rate of ice melting doubled between 1996 and 2005.
This graphic shows seasonal melting on Greenland
in 1992 (left) and 2002 (right).

I have no answers for what can be done to stop such widespread problems going on with our planet. I'm not going to argue all the finer points about this very sensitive and politically-charged issue.

However - EVERYONE should at least read this article about accelerating ice melt.

Educate yourself. At least stop and consider the implications of what is going to happen to our world as we know it. Or at least, what the future may hold for our own children...

Be concerned. Be very concerned...

Grand Rapids First United Methodist Church Gallery Show

My work will be featured throughout the months of December 2007 and January 2008 at Grand Rapids First United Methodist Church, located at 227 East Fulton Street in downtown Grand Rapids, Michigan.

The show will hang from Wednesday, December 12, 2007 through Friday, January 18, 2008. The FUMC Gallery is open:

• Monday-Thursday: 9am-9pm
• Friday: 9am-4pm
• Saturday: not open to the public
• Sunday: 9am-Noon
  

First Church considers art a form of praise and worship and regularly rotates exhibitions of artists. For more information about First Church, the Art Gallery and hours - please call 616-451-2879 or visit www.grandrapidsfumc.org.

Here are other links mentioning my show:

• Eventful
  
• GRNow.org
• Grand Rapids / Kent County Convention & Visitors Bureau
• Northeast Advance newspaper
  

Show at Bishop Hills

I am pleased to announce a quick holiday art show has been arranged at Bishop Hills Elder Care Community in Rockford, Michigan.

An unexpected change of art show schedules made the wall space available on very short notice. After many phone calls and emails - and within a day - four other wonderful local artists have their work alongside my images. The artwork will be enjoyed through January 4th, 2008.

The residents of Bishop Hills will vote on their favorite piece from the show, and will award prizes to be given at a small reception in the artists' honor. The reception will be held on Thursday, December 27th at 4:30 pm. at Bishop Hills, located at 4951 11 Mile Road, Rockford, Michigan.

Come enjoy the work of:

• Mary Lou Moll - Watercolor
  Ada, Michigan artist Mary Lou Moll has done commission watercolors exclusively for both private and corporate clients. She also paints scenes of the Great Lakes, pets and family homes. Mary Lou has developed her own special technique in watercolor - her works are very realistic with detail being her forte.
  

• Joanne Peltz - Mixed media & water-soluble oils
  Joanne Peltz is a visionary artist whose contribution to her world has been to reflect it, to distill its essence, to visualize its seasons, moods, people and peculiarities. In her own way, she has expressed her vision of the world, her idea of the purpose of art and her belief of art's value.
  
  
  

• Kathy Putnam - Oil & pastel
  (starting Dec. 7)
  Kathleen Putnam is an artist who works in the Realistic Style of art and whose medium is oil and pastel. She mainly does landscapes, but enjoys doing portraits also. Kathleen is represented by Treeline Gallery in Suttons Bay, MI, The Nines Gallery in Holland, MI, and The Ann Arbor Art Center in Ann Arbor, MI.
  
  
• Barbara Schilling - Oil
  (starting Dec. 7)
  Barbara Schilling believes that creating art is an ever-evolving event. With each painting, something new is discovered. Sometimes the process seems too slow, and even frustrating. Sometimes the process is joyous and fulfilling. Barbara thinks it's necessary to just keep moving along where the process leads you.
  

• Stacy Niedzwiecki - Photography
  (from December 1 - 7)
  Stacy's fascination with nature has found its way through the camera lens, encouraging the viewer to appreciate the quiet, beautiful moments around the state of Michigan. The pieces will move to the First United Methodist Church Gallery in downtown Grand Rapids, where they will hang from December 12 until January 18, 2008.
  

I wish to thank Susan Bodenner, Administrator of Bishop Hills Elder Care Community, for this special opportunity to enrich the lives of their residents and local community.

The First Snow

A shot of our growing puppy Buster - enjoying his first real snow! The wind and cold didn't seem to be a problem for him at all. Being partially American Eskimo breed, Buster looked like he felt right at home.

I have done quiet a bit of pet portrait photography, and truly enjoy it! If you'd like to have your dog, cat, horse or even your favorite iguana photographed, feel free to contact me.

Here's just a sampling of what I can create for you: