September Photo Journal / A Detroit Collage

WE SPEAK IN COLORS PHOTO JOURNAL

By Andy Armstrong / September 2026 / Detroit, MI, USA

When I last wrote at the end of August, we were knee-deep in new school year season.

Labor Day hit soon after. Summer’s final hurrah, the spiritual end of the season.

Then came the in-between stretch where mornings and evenings cooled off, but days stayed scorching.

Things shifted leading up to the equinox though. And by the Harvest Moon this past weekend, we landed in that perfect pocket of chilly mornings with warm afternoon sun, the kind where you just wanna tilt your face towards it and bask.

With September ending, here’s a handful of photos from the month:

1/ Hamtramck Public Library. Always a joy stepping into a beautifully designed mid-century library.

2/ Both classic and futurist, the Renaissance Center is an iconic Detroit building. A thrill to encounter at night. I swear it has an electric pulse.

3/ Sheila's Bakery in Southwest Detroit. Orange Gatorade coolers full of piping hot atole. A subtly sweet, soul-warming, creamy drink from Mesoamerica. Although she never made it, for some reason it’s encoded with memories of my grandma's house.

4/ A John Coltrane 100th birthday exhibition in Midtown Detroit. I knew very little of his story or music beforehand. After this, an immediate fan.

5/ A Saturday adventure through Southfield to hit an Armenian church, Korean market, and this strange concentration of modernist and mid-century architecture.

6/ Walked to the Fisher Building for some Saturday morning studies. Started pouring rain while inside, so spent the next hour wandering its incredible halls.

7/ Equinox evening. The river and plaza behind, looking up Woodward Avenue into the heart of downtown.

8/ Because of the Hamtramck neighborhood's Eastern European roots, you'll find extraordinary churches like St. Florian. Was out for a Sunday morning stroll as a service started. Had to take a peek.

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Now here we are at October.

A month of wonder ahead. Hot apple cider, pumpkin donuts, and leaves changing color.

Next time I write, we'll be on the edge of November and turning the clocks back. Leaves past their peak, long johns coming out.

For now, a wondrous chunk of weeks ahead.

-Andy