Eye candy of the week

Property:  211 M.A.C. Ave., East Lansing

Owner:  Mackerel Sky

Taxpayer: Mackerel Sky

Assessed:  $14,600

Holiday windows are a classic seasonal tradition. Started in the 1800s by department stores like R.H. Macy’s and Marshall Field’s, elaborate holiday motifs have graced retail stores from mid-November to the New Year. At it’s height, J. L. Hudson’s Woodward Avenue store had over fifty display windows. 

Window displays matter. They attract people despite bitter cold Michigan winters, which in turn attracts more people — impromptu social gatherings on the sidewalk makes for good community and economic prosperity. Mackerel Sky in downtown East Lansing is certainly doing its part.

Throughout the year the contemporary craft gallery serves up noteworthy window displays that are a combination of wit and elegance. The holiday window is a real showstopper — a winged blizzard. Over 300 suspended origami cranes grace the windows like a cluster of snowflakes on a bright winter day. 

A bit tongue and cheek, this handcrafted display is the work of Mackerel Sky’s own, Alicia Trantum. According to Trantum, it took one-and-a-half to two weeks to create all of the birds and another three days to install. Completely worth it.