Photos: A look back at May in Madison from State Journal photographers
A look at some of the best photos from May by State Journal photographers Amber Arnold, John Hart and Owen Ziliak.
Unable to gain access to the Watertown High School wind ensemble’s performance of "A Mother of a Revolution" due to capacity restrictions, advocates of the band’s choice to perform it listen through the windows of Immanuel Lutheran Church in Watertown, Wis. Wednesday, May 20, 2026. The piece compose by Omar Thomas was inspired by Marsha Johnson, a Black transgender woman credited with helping to bring about the 1969 Stonewall riots, a landmark event in the gay rights movement. After the Watertown School board prohibited the work from being played at a school concert earlier in the week, the church offered the musicians a venue to play the piece. JOHN HART, STATE JOURNAL
Stephen Nut steps out of the side of a plane after loading beagles to be flown to the East Coast on Saturday, May 2, 2026 at Southern Wisconsin Regional Airport in Janesville, Wis. OWEN ZILIAK, STATE JOURNAL
Alma Herrmann and Tommy Pethan share the back of a van during a visit to the opening night of the Highway 18 Outdoor Theatre’s summer season in Jefferson, Wis. Thursday, May 21, 2026. JOHN HART, STATE JOURNAL
Subcontractors for Maguire out of Sioux Falls, South Dakota roll on an intermediate coat of epoxy paint on the new 600,000-gallon water tower located on Highway 14 and Lacy Road in Fitchburg, Wis. Friday, May 29, 2026. The painting project will take a couple of weeks to complete. AMBER ARNOLD, STATE JOURNAL
People watch as pole vaulters compete at the Big Eight Conference Track and Field Championship on Friday, May 15, 2026 at Sun Prairie East High School in Sun Prairie, Wis. OWEN ZILIAK, STATE JOURNAL
Enjoying sunny skies and the area’s influx of summer-like temperatures, Jeff Battle takes flight over a ramp at Goodman Skatepark in Madison, Wis. Tuesday, May 26, 2026. JOHN HART, STATE JOURNAL
Stoughton High School Norwegian Dancers perform at the state Capitol ahead of Stoughton’s Syttende Mai festival this weekend, in Madison, Wis. 13, 2026. The annual event, celebrating Norwegian heritage, begins Friday and runs through Sunday in Stoughton. AMBER ARNOLD, STATE JOURNAL
Menasha Police Department officers salute during the national anthem at the 36th Annual Wisconsin Law Enforcement Memorial Ceremony on Friday, May 8, 2026 at the Wisconsin State Capitol in Madison, Wis. OWEN ZILIAK, STATE JOURNAL
Beagles from Ridglan Farms are treated in an exam room on Monday, May 11, 2026 at the Dane County Humane Society in Madison, Wis. OWEN ZILIAK, STATE JOURNAL
As preparations progress for the June 11 opening of the Goodman Pool, lifeguards Jennie Maly, left, Ella Cook and Nathan Streicher begin the chore of returning the facility’s collection of decks chairs to the perimeter of the pool in Madison, Wis. Monday, May 18, 2026, JOHN HART, STATE JOURNAL
Erin Wells, front house manager, serves food to a group, who were all members of Mill Creek Catholic Church in Arena, including Marie Murphy, left, of Middleton, Marian Wright, of Arena, and Ginny Feist, right, of Barneveld, during a monthly gathering at Spring Green General Store in Spring Green, Wis. Wednesday, May 20, 2026. AMBER ARNOLD, STATE JOURNAL
UW-Madison students in caps and gowns take the bus to the commencement ceremony for the Class of 2026 at UW-Madison at Camp Randall on Saturday, May 9, 2026 in Madison, Wis. OWEN ZILIAK, STATE JOURNAL
United States Marine Corps veterans Glen Godfroy, left, and Travis Riggs affix engraved panels to a Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall in Watertown, Wis. Friday, May 15, 2026. Honoring the more than 58,000 armed forces members who lost their lives in the war, the 320-foot-long memorial is 80-percent the size of the Vietnam Memorial in Washington DC, which it was patterned after. JOHN HART, STATE JOURNAL
Thousands of members of Madison’s Muslim community gather for Eid al-Adha, a prayer and social celebration which emphasizes values of compassion, gratitude, charity, and community at the Alliant Energy Center in Madison, Wis. Wednesday, May 27, 2026. Also known as the “Festival of Sacrifice,” it is one of the most important holidays of Islam and coincides with the completion of the annual Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca. Here, elebrants gather outside the venue following the prayer service. JOHN HART, STATE JOURNAL
As students at UW-Madison in Madison, Wis. contend with final exams this week, a variety of de-stressing opportunities offer a chance for them to momentarily unwind. Among the diversions Tuesday, May 5, 2026 were a pair of animal engagement events. Participating in a meet a cow event presented by the university’s Research Animal Resources and Compliance department is mechanical engineering student Grace Morgan. JOHN HART, STATE JOURNAL
Waunakee infielder Wes DuCharme (11) holds the ball up in his glove to show the umpire after tagging Verona outfielder Cejon Knutson (13) out at third on Monday, May 18, 2026 at Stampfl Field in Verona, Wis. OWEN ZILIAK, STATE JOURNAL
Stoughton’s Millie Vinson (10) reacts after scoring a run against DeForest during a softball game at Stoughton High School in Stoughton, Wis. Thursday, May 21, 2026. AMBER ARNOLD, STATE JOURNAL
Rev. Marcus Allen walks through a doorway inside the old worship space on Tuesday, May 12, 2026 at Mt. Zion Baptist Church in Madison, Wis. OWEN ZILIAK, STATE JOURNAL
Wausau firefighter Cody Volm walks through pumped in smoke during a simulated extraction at the Professional Fire Fighters of Wisconsin Fire OPS 101 training on Wednesday, May 27, 2026 at Madison Area Technical College in Madison, Wis. OWEN ZILIAK, STATE JOURNAL
The Wild Vikings Wiffle Ball Team, comprised of students from Mount Horeb and Verona Area High Schools, huddle together after an Adapted Sports League wiffle ball game against Waunakee at Verona Area High School in Verona, Wis. Wednesday, May 13, 2026. AMBER ARNOLD, STATE JOURNAL
Volunteer grillers at the World’s Largest Brat Fest work before dawn to prepare orders for the festival’s popular “Take Your Brat to Work Day” on the grounds of the Alliant Energy Center in Madison, Wis. Friday, May 22, 2026. JOHN HART, STATE JOURNAL
Dan Yoder, owner of Sign Art Studio in Mount Horeb, and Eric Prehn, left, install paintings, by artist Lacy Shotliff, of women who played significant roles in the history of Evansville, on the side of Lake Ridge Bank in downtown Evansville, Wis. 7, 2026. AMBER ARNOLD, STATE JOURNAL
Event attendees stand for the national anthem, including Karen Schilling, center left, of Madison, and her daughter, Kari Dean, center right, of Waunakee, who remember Steele Schilling, Schilling’s husband and Dean’s father, a U.S. Air Force veteran who died in January at age 82, during a Memorial Day ceremony at the state Capitol in Madison, Wis. Monday, May 25, 2026. AMBER ARNOLD, STATE JOURNAL
A group of friends graduating from UW-Madison gather for a photo on Bascom Hill ahead of Saturday’s commencement ceremony at Camp Randall Stadium, on campus in Madison, Wis. 8, 2026. AMBER ARNOLD, STATE JOURNAL
Nuestra Mundo Community School fourth grade teacher Kristen Scott shares a group embrace with her students after being announced as one of five 2026-27 Wisconsin Teachers of the Year at the school in Madison, Wis. Wednesday, May 6, 2026. JOHN HART, STATE JOURNAL
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