Historic Photo Album
List of Beam Signers
Past Scarab Presidents
Gold Medal Winners
Scarab Club Archivist

1912 Scarab Christmas Party. Each member brought a “silly” toy to exchange.

In the beginning
The club was founded about 1907 by a group of artists and art lovers who liked to meet regularly to discuss art, socialize, and share a meal together. It was first known as the Hopkin Club. In 1913 the group was formalized as the Scarab Club, with bylaws, officers, and a board of directors. The club's vision was "to promote the mutual acquaintance of art lovers and art workers; to stimulate and guide toward practical expression the artistic sense of the people of Detroit; to advance the knowledge and love of the fine arts in every possible manner; and to maintain a clubhouse for entertainment and social purposes as well as to provide working and exhibit facilities for artist members." In 1928 a permanent structure was built to help meet these goals.

The early years
The club's themed costumed balls, held from 1917 to 1950, were the single most important social event in Detroit each year. Life Magazine covered the 1937 event with a two-page photo spread and The Detroit News and The Detroit Free Press also gave the annual balls two pages in their photo sections. Radio station WJR broadcast live from the 1937 "Scarabean Cruise" ball.

The annual Exhibition of Michigan Artists at the Detroit Institute of Arts was originated by the Scarab Club in 1911. In 1915 the Scarab Club Prize became the top award and in 1917 the first Scarab Club Gold Medal was awarded. The gold medal is still the club's most prestigious award, given each December at the Gold Medal Exhibition and Dinner.

The building
The clubhouse was built in 1928 in the Northern Italian Renaissance style by architect and member Lancelot Sukert. The exterior mosaic tiles, which appeared in 1928 renderings, were not completed until the 1980s, when they were finished by W.P.A. muralist and member Edgar Yaeger, who was a junior member of the club in 1928. The ceramic scarab embedded over the front entrance was designed by sculptor Horace Colby and fired at Pewabic Pottery.

The original paneled wood entry in the front hints at intrigue inside, while a brick-walled courtyard in the rear of the building conjures up more pastoral images, with its exquisite flower gardens, fountain and statuary. The club contains several galleries and lounges, as well as six working artist studios. The second floor lounge is unique for its massive ceiling beams painted by members in 1928 and signed by more than 230 artists since, including Diego Rivera, Norman Rockwell, Marshall Fredricks and Pablo Davis. Other beams were painted to depict events in the club's history. The lounge also contains a fireplace with mural depicting different levels of club membership, painted by Paul Honore. Original mica and metal lighting and furnishings complete the decor.