Sunday, May 18th, 2025 | 5:00pm - 9:00pm
The Scarab Club
217 Farnsworth St.
Detroit, MI 48202
A Dinner CELEBRATING THE Detroit Arts & Crafts Movement
Featuring Executive Chef Kate Williams, Lady of the House, Detroit
$325 per person (including a $100 tax-deductible donation to the Center)
DINNER SPONSORS
Anna and Chris Rea
Thrifty Florist
HOST
Gregory Wittkopp, Director, Cranbrook Center for Collections and Research
CENTER STORYTELLERS
Kevin Adkisson, Curator
Mariam Hale, 2023-2025 Collections Fellow
Presented by Cranbrook Center for Collections and Research
High above the entrance to the Scarab Club is the club’s logo, an Egyptian scarab, made by Detroit’s celebrated Pewabic Pottery.
THE STORY
This year’s Edible Landscapes Dinner will tell the story of Cranbrook and the Scarab Club, one rooted in the Arts & Craft movement that celebrates many shared artists and stories. Executive Chef Kate Williams from Lady of the House will present a five-course menu of culinary delights inspired by the legacies of Cranbrook and the Scarab Club—highlighting the Detroit food scene that surrounded their foundings in the early 1900s. The evening will also include an exclusive look at the Scarab Club studios, where you will be able to meet a few of the current artists and explore these inspiring spaces.
This year’s Edible Landscapes Dinner will tell the story of Cranbrook and the Scarab Club, one rooted in the Arts & Craft movement that celebrates many shared artists and stories. Executive Chef Kate Williams from Lady of the House will present a five-course menu of culinary delights inspired by the legacies of Cranbrook and the Scarab Club—highlighting the Detroit food scene that surrounded their foundings in the early 1900s. The evening will also include an exclusive look at the Scarab Club studios, where you will be able to meet a few of the current artists and explore these inspiring spaces.
George and Ellen Booth’s oldest son, the artist and automotive designer James Scripps Booth, was an early member of the Scarab Club.
THE SCARAB CLUB
The Scarab Club was founded in 1907 in Detroit by a group of artists and art patrons. It was originally called the Hopkin Club after noted maritime painter Robert Hopkin, who immigrated to the United States from Scotland in 1843 and became a leading painter in mid to late 19th-century Detroit. George and Ellen Booth and Henry and Carolynn Booth both owned paintings by Hopkin, which they proudly displayed in their homes, Cranbrook House and Thornlea. After Hopkin’s death in 1909, the name of the club was changed to the Scarab Club, reflecting the popular enthusiasm for all things Egyptian and being inspired by the collection of carved scarabs held by club President James Swan.
In 1913, the club became a formal entity with the adoption of by-laws, a board of elected officials and directors, and incorporation. In these early days, the club sponsored sketching from a live model, art talks and lectures, parties and other social events, art exhibitions, and other activities — the same kind of activities found in today’s Scarab Club — to showcase local art and educate the community about art.
During the early years, a number of locations around the city provided meeting space, but in October 1928, the current “clubhouse” opened its doors. The building’s architect, club member Lancelot Sukert (1888-1966), who worked briefly in the office of Albert Kahn, was chosen by the club’s member architects. The design, building construction, and architectural and decorative elements were all executed by the membership.
Several Booth family members collected paintings by Scarab Club founder Robert Hopkin, including "Homeward Bound," which was displayed in the dining room at Thornlea, Henry and Carolyn Booth’s home.
The red brick building, behind the Detroit Institute of Art, blends Moderne with Arts & Crafts. The first-floor Gallery opens to a courtyard on the north. Over the fireplace in the wooden beamed and paneled second-floor Lounge, a mural painted by Paul Honoré depicts the Scarab family tree. Six working Studios with galleries are located on the third floor.
The original club was exclusively for men and was limited to twenty five members. The membership included artists, advertising illustrators, car designers, and architects, among others. Women were admitted to membership after 1962. From that early small group, today the membership has grown to more than 500, attracting artists and art enthusiasts from all over.
Distinguished members, guests, and important artists are invited to sign the “guest book,” the sides of the ceiling beams of the second floor Lounge. Hundreds of signatures, including those of Albert Kahn, Eliel Saarinen, Carl Milles, Zoltan Sepeshy, and Cranbrook Academy of Art graduates Carol Wald, Glen Michaels, and Marie Woo, can be seen, chronicling the cultural life of the city.
The Scarab Club, one of the oldest arts organizations in Detroit, has welcomed artists and art lovers without interruption for 115 years—a legacy that parallels that of Cranbrook.
The Edible Landscapes Dinner will take place in the second-floor Lounge, which features a mural painted by Paul Honoré.
CHEF KATE WILLIAMS
Chef Kate Williams is the Executive Chef and Owner of Lady of the House and June Rose Catering. A Detroit native, Williams grew up surrounded by a large Irish Catholic family where food and drink were the main event. After graduating from the French Culinary Institute in New York City, Williams spent time in Chicago where she served as Sous Chef to Wolfgang Puck. She then returned to Detroit for roles as Executive Chef at Detroit’s Republic Tavern and Rodin restaurants. Williams also cooked in Copenhagen at the famed Relae restaurant. It was during her time there that Williams found her style of cooking—Nordic food with a little romance.
In September 2017, Williams opened her first restaurant, Lady of the House, in Detroit’s Corktown district. In its first year, Lady of the House was named a James Beard Foundation semi-finalist for “Best New Restaurant, 2017,” and a GQ “Best New Restaurant in America, 2018.” In May 2018 Williams received the honor of Food & Wine “Best New Chef 2018.”
After taking a pause during the pandemic and finding a new location, Lady of the House reopened in the fall of 2024 in Detroit’s Core City neighborhood. As Williams shared, “We still have more of a story to tell.” It's a story that will be shared at this year’s Edible Landscapes Dinner.
LADY OF THE HOUSE
The Lady of the House is a figure deeply ingrained in the familial and domestic spheres, serving as the matriarchal archetype that exudes warmth, hospitality, and refined guidance. She is the mentor who imparts the art of culinary and hosting skills, much like the way Chef Kate Williams was tutored by her mother and grandmothers during her formative years.
This notion, which resonates profoundly with each member of the Lady family, represents a philosophy of meticulous care, of crafting meals and beverages with affection, and expressing gratitude. It encapsulates the fortitude, tenacity, benevolence, and attentiveness that characterizes every Lady of the House, whether she is engaged in meal preparation or striving diligently to enhance the lives of her kin and the wider community.
THE EVENING
This not-to-be-missed, special dining experience is strictly limited to 65 guests. Guests are encouraged to register early as Edible Landscapes Dinners sell out quickly. If you try to register for the dinner and find that it has sold out, please contact the Center to be placed on the waitlist.
5:00 - 6:00 p.m.
Cocktails in the First-floor Gallery
6:00 - 8:00 p.m.
Dinner in the Second-floor Lounge
8:00 - 9:00 p.m.
Exploration Time in the Third-floor Studios
HISTORY OF THE EDIBLE LANDSCAPES DINNERS
The Center’s signature Edible Landscape Dinners were conceived by artist and Cranbrook Academy of Art graduate Emily Staugaitis (CAA ’15). For the first dinner in 2015, the Center worked with Seldon Standard in Detroit to craft an experience highlighting food items planted in Cranbrook's gardens a century ago. Subsequent dinners—presented in collaboration with Gold Cash Gold, Wright & Company, Chef Sarah Welch, Chef Matthew Baldridge, Chef Suzuki of Sharaku, and Chef Cory Barberio of San Morello—explored the history of Cranbrook’s Greek Theatre; the Lake Como-inspired Boat House; the story of Cranbrook’s matriarch Ellen Scripps Booth; the European travels of the Booths’ youngest son Henry Booth and his wife, Carolyn Farr Booth; the history of the Cranbrook Japanese Garden; and the Vettraino family’s origins in Italy.
The Center’s signature Edible Landscape Dinners were conceived by artist and Cranbrook Academy of Art graduate Emily Staugaitis (CAA ’15). For the first dinner in 2015, the Center worked with Seldon Standard in Detroit to craft an experience highlighting food items planted in Cranbrook's gardens a century ago. Subsequent dinners—presented in collaboration with Gold Cash Gold, Wright & Company, Chef Sarah Welch, Chef Matthew Baldridge, Chef Suzuki of Sharaku, and Chef Cory Barberio of San Morello—explored the history of Cranbrook’s Greek Theatre; the Lake Como-inspired Boat House; the story of Cranbrook’s matriarch Ellen Scripps Booth; the European travels of the Booths’ youngest son Henry Booth and his wife, Carolyn Farr Booth; the history of the Cranbrook Japanese Garden; and the Vettraino family’s origins in Italy.
TICKETS
Tickets for this five-course dining experience are $325 per person and include a $100 tax-deductible donation to Cranbrook Center for Collections and Research. Tickets may be purchased online or by calling Jess Webster, Development Coordinator for the Center, at 248.645.3589.
ATTIRE
There is no formal dress code. Guests for the Center’s past Edible Landscapes Dinners have typically dressed as they would for dinner at their favorite restaurant in Detroit.
PARKING
There is a small lot connected to the Scarab Club, and additional street parking located on Farnsworth Street. Parking on Detroit city streets is free on Sundays.
ACCESSIBILITY
Please note, the event will take place across multiple floors of the Scarab Club, and due to the historic nature of the building, there is no elevator.
DINNER SPONSORS:
Anna and Chris Rea
PHOTO CREDITS
Banner image:
Scarab Club Building Exterior. Photography courtesy of pewabic.org.
Scarab Club Membership Card, 1920. Photography courtesy of Cranbrook Archives.
Robert Hopkin (Scottish American, 1832 - 1909), Homeward Bound, Collection of Cranbrook Center for Collections and Research, Bequest of Henry Scripps and Carolyn Farr Booth. Photography courtesy of Cranbrook Center for Collections and Research.
Scarab Club Room. Photography courtesy of Scarab Club.
Lady of the House Executive Chef Kate Williams. Photography courtesy of Lady of the House.
Dinner Plate. Photography courtesy of Lady of the House.