Public programs facilitate dialogue between academics and professionals, informing scholarship and strengthening practice.
Multiple day conferences, year-long colloquia, individual lectures, “conversations” between individuals, hands-on workshops, and Museums at Noon talks featuring our graduate students all contribute to the remarkable richness of MSP offerings.
Video recordings of some MSP lectures are archived for viewing in our Media Gallery.
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From Club to Third Space: On the Interrogation and Creation of Community at the Scarab Club, Detroit
March 22, 2019 @ 12:00 pm - 1:00 pm
Date: Friday, March 22
Time: 12:00 pm
Location: UM Museum of Art, Multi-Purpose Room (125)
Presenter: Megan Berkobien (PhD candidate, Comparative Literature)
From Club to Third Space: On the Interrogation and Creation of Community at the Scarab Club, Detroit
For over a century, the Scarab Club has been an important gathering space for artists and patrons in Detroit’s museum district. Yet, while the Scarab Club takes its mission as “foster[ing] a stronger, more vibrant arts community in Detroit,” the majority of its members and staff live outside of the city. In this sense, it is no surprise that the once-exclusive Club has yet to transcend its legacy as an organization closed to large swaths of the Detroit community, including those most marginalized by the suburb-city divide. As an intern, I worked alongside staff to get intentional about community making and inclusion. In addition to assisting in day-to-day operations, I designed a visitor’s survey, supported and coordinated programming that featured Detroiters of color, and facilitated conversations about equity and governance whenever possible. In this talk, I will discuss how the Club might confront its history of exclusion through creative exhibition and programming, and, by doing so, better position itself as a gallery and arts venue that uplifts artists from within the city.
