SCARABVOL. V JUNE • 1928 No. 1

The Detroit Civic Theatre

EVERY SCARAB SHOULD BE A MEMBEREVERY SCARAB SHOULD GET A MEMBER

RETURN CARDS TO CLUB

BY JUNE 23rd

CALENDAR OF EVENTS

£<£ktySff

Saturday, June 23 — Club Dinner at old Clubhouse.There will be one dinner each month duringthe summer. By reservation only. Call Glen-dale 1820.

Laymen's and Artists' Sketch Classes are discon-tinued for the summer months.

Every Tuesday Evening— Research, 7:30 to 9:30.

Every Tuesday and Thursday — Luncheon at theClubhouse, 12:30.

Luncheon is Served on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fri-days, and Saturdays to members who makereservation by 12 :00 o'clock.

COMING EVENTS

The Decorations Committee for the new Clubhouseis formulating its plans. Every member shouldbe doing something. See R. O. Bennett, Chair-man, for instructions.

The Arts Committee is planning the Annual WalterPiper Purchase Prize Exhibition for the pub-lic opening of the new Clubhouse. Entriesfor this exhibition must be ready by Septem-ber 15.

THE SCARAB CLUB B U L L E T I NVOL. V DETROIT ' JUNE 1928 No. 1

THE DETROIT CIVIC THEATER

On Monday evening, May twenty-first, several officers and directors ofthe Scarab Club attended the Bon-stelle Playhouse as the guests of MissBonstelle. It had been rumored thatMiss Bonstelle was to announce herplan for the organization of a CivicTheater similar in form and ideals tothe Theatre Guild of New York andthe Civic Repertory Theater of EvaLeGallienne. This proved to be thecase and the remarks of Miss Bonstelleand Mr. Lingeman were listened towith considerable interest and ap-proval.

There were perhaps a hundred otherswho had waited after the performanceand been greeted by Miss Bonstelleand there could be no doubt that sev-eral of them were of the clergy. Now,it is quite true that the great art ofthe Middle Ages and the Renaissancewas almost entirely identified with thechurch, but it is also true that artistshave at various times come in for adeal of denunciation from the pulpitsof the world because of the freedomof their views and the frankness oftheir private lives. And artists, moregenerally perhaps than any othergroup, have made a fashion of agnos-ticism. So, as phrases such as "the re-ligious significance of the Drama" and''the attention of your congregation"were followed by the introduction ofthe Reverend This and Father That,the little group of Scarab representa-tives began to feel either that the man-agement had made an error in their in-vitations or else the profession ofpainting, etcetera, had become respec-table overnight. However, when MissBonstelle introduced Mr. Lewis withthe remark that the presence of someScarab Club members was proof ofher ability to mix the holy and the un-holy, everyone's mind was put at restand the balance of sanctity was re-stored.

All this, however, has nothing todo with the case. The point is thatMiss Bonstelle is striving to create anorganization which should be of im-measureable value to the aesthetic andcultural life of the city. The highproduction standard which she hasmaintained through the many yearsthat her companies have been playingin Detroit immediately recommendsanything she may attempt in the fu-ture. At the same time, there can beno doubt that the organized audiencewhich the Civic Theater implies is thebest means of providing the artists ofthe theater with that confidence andsecurity which are essential to reallyfine productions. The Scarab Clubtakes great pleasure in recommendingand supporting this movement andhopes that a majority of the Scarabmembers will become members of theDetroit Civic Theater Foundation.Anyone who wishes to know more con-cerning this campaign, which openedJune eleventh, or cares to assist in anyway with its success may communi-cate with the Club office.

For the information of our memberswe are repeating the following de-tailed announcement:

The Detroit Civic Theater, plans forwhich are now being made, will differin many important respects from anyother theatrical organization in Amer-ica. It does not compete with the otherDetroit theaters. It is not interestedin rolling up big profits. It does notdesire straight long runs for the playsit produces.

On the other hand it does want toproduce the most worthwhile Americanand European plays in Detroit. It doeswant to present hitherto unproducedplays of merit by American play-wrights. It does want to build up aband of regular supporters. Above allit does want to become a permanentpart of the city's cultural facilities

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such as are supplied in other fields bythe library, the Art Institute and theSymphony Orchestra.

The work which has already beenaccomplished by Miss Bonstelle is toowell-known to need any recommenda-tion to Detroiters. For the past fifteenyears she has stood for all that is bestin the drama in our city and her recentproductions of Shaw's "Saint Joan"and Ibsen's "Ghosts" are an earnestof what she could accomplish with ad-ded support and background.

It is to enable her to devote hergenius to the city's good rather thanto any private or commercial end thatit has been decided to inaugurate theDetroit Civic Theater Foundation andthus take the first step towards thepermanent establishment of a theaterfinanced, owned and operated by andfor the people of Detroit—a true Peo-ple's Theater in the most literal senseof the words.

To achieve this object an influentialcommittee has been formed and hasevolved a plan for the prosecution ofa campaign to be known as "The JessieBonstelle Campaign for the DetroitCivic Theater Foundation."

The primary object of this undertak-ing will be the securing of 50,000 an-nual dollar members for the Founda-tion for the 1928-1929 season (July 1st,1928 to June 30th, 1929) and 'fromJune llth to June 22nd some three hun-dred volunteer workers will solicit dol-lar memberships from all whom theycan reach.

When these 50,000 members havebeen secured they will enable MissBonstelle to make the following sub-stantial reductions in the pricescharged for seats:—

33 1/3% on Monday and Tuesday.20% on Wednesday, Thursday and

Friday.10% on Saturday and Sunday.

Until the fifty thousand is reachedmembers will be entitled to a 10 percent reduction on all tickets purchasedfor their personal use.

In addition an endeavor will be madeto secure a number of Sustaining Mem-

bers. These Sustaining Members willpay one hundred dollars or alterna-tively twenty dollars a year for fiveyears and in addition to receiving thereduction on the prices of seats will beentitled to vote for, and sit on, theBoard which will be the GoverningBody for the enterprise. SustainingMembers will also be entitled to sixfree Monday evening Guild Meetings.

Lastly, there will be a Founder'sMembership of those who contribute$500.00 or over. The names of allFounders will be permanently recordedon a tablet in the theater.

With these three classes of member-ship as a background, Miss Bonstellewill be enabled to present each seasona number of plays of high literary, ar-tistic and educational merit eventhough their financial success is proble-matical ; to bring to Detroit guest starsof national prominence; to present freeperformances of worthwhile plays forstudents and school children; and tostage more elaborate and spectacularproductions than have been possibleheretofore.

No more difficult or ambitious pro-gram has ever been promulgated inDetroit and it can only become an ac-complished fact if all those interestedwill help.

Headquarters have been establishedon the Ball Room Mezzanine Floor ofthe Book-Cadillac Hotel (TelephoneCherry 3110-3111) and anyone willingto assist is earnestly requested to callor Avrite there, offering their serviceswhich will be gratefully accepted. Atthis stage workers are even more im-portant than members but if anyonecan not work but is willing to becomea member they should send in theirapplication together with one dollarto the Bonstelle Playhouse.

The movement for the establishmentof such theaters may well assume na-tional .proportions. In Miss Bonstelle,Detroit has an ideal leader for such aproject. Its successful accomplishmentwill reflect lasting credit and honor toour city.

IllIll

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ARMIN SEIFFERT AND THE SCRIPPS-WHITCOMB SCHOLARSHIP

For the second time since it was es-tablished some five or six years agothe Anna Scripps Whitcomb Scholar-ship was awarded to a young Scarabartist. Armin Seiffert, this year's re-cipient of the thousand dollar scholar-ship for European travel, was easilychosen as one of the three finalists inthe competition and in the face ofunusually fine entries from the othertwo received the unanimous approvalof the judges for the award.

Armin has been known to the Scarabmembers for several years, being theson of Berthold Seiffert, and his elec-tion to membership last Fall made himthe first second-generation Scarab ar-tist. The entry, on the strength ofwhich he was awarded the scholarship,was a mural decoration on the themeof "The Adoration of the Shepherds"and was designed as the over-mantelfor a church parlor. It is quite mod-ern in the vigorous simplicity of itsdrawing, and the religious flavor of itstheme is emphasized by the richness ofthe color masses. The painting ofmurals is one of the most difficultclassifications of the artist's craft dueto the architectural problems whichmust be considered, and young Seifferthas apparently kept these problemswell in mind.

Armin's plans for the use of theaward are comparatively vague, buthis idea at present is a highly com-mendable one. He has no thought ofattempting a period of study in any ofthe European art schools but rather ofspending his time in the great artcapitals such as Paris and Munich, ab-sorbing as much as possible of the en-vironment and background which havemade possible the masterpieces forwhich they are famous.

In this connection it might be aswell to remark that this generous offerof Mr. and Mrs. E. B. Whitcomb isthe only art scholarship of any im-portance awarded in Detroit. And thefive hundred dollar purchase prize do-nated annually by Walter Piper to theScarab Club is by far and away thelargest prize. Now it may seem likeputting a premium on art to say thatthe size and number of scholarship andprize awards denote the art interest ordevelopment of a city, but this is verymuch the case. The citizens of Detroitmay well be proud of the increasing im-portance of the Art Institute as a re-pository for famous masterpieces, 'butnot until the Institute is in a positionto sponsor exhibitions of its own com-parable to the Carnegie or the Pennsyl-vania or the Chicago shows will De-troit begin to take its proper place inthe world of art. The only large juryshow held in the Institute, the Michi-gan Artists' Exhibition, is surprisinglydeficient in the matter of prizes andwhether one likes it or not it is theprizes which determine the importanceof an exhibition from the standpointof the exhibitor and, in an entirelydifferent way, of the public as well.

The annual Walter Piper PurchasePrize Exhibition is becoming the bestlocal show of the year due to the gene-rosity of Mr. Piper and the other mem-bers who make possible the two prizeawards. It is limited, however, toScarab artists and for this reason itraises the standard of the Scarab Clubonly and not of the city as a whole.

Mr. and Mrs. Whitcomb and Mr. Pi-per are to be congratulated not onlyfor their generosity 'but also for theirforesight in being pioneers as well aspatrons.

T H E S C A R A B

Bulletin of

THE.SCARAB CLUB OF DETROIT

225 Farnsworth Avenue,

Detroit, Michigan

ALBERT de SALLE, Editor

CHARLES JAQUISH, Associate

Committee on PublicationsAlbert de Salle, Chairman

A. C. Eastman, Benjamin March,Charles Jaquish, F. S. Nixon, Don

Kennedy, Clyde Nordquist,E. I. Davidson

THIS ISSUE

Contrary to the best editorial cus-tom, it was decided to interrupt thePortrait of the Artists' series for thismonth and devote the June number tosome of the broader implications ofthe Scarab Club's new place in thecivic fabric of Detroit. The period ofits incubation was completed when theClub moved to its present quarters onForest Avenue and the sphere of itsactivity and influence have been in-creasing rapidly in the four yearssince then. The imminent occupationof the new building on FarnsworthAvenue is a concrete expression of theScarab Club's position as a definitecivic force and a realization of theresponsibilities which such a positionimplies. THE SCARAB is the mostimmediate means of publicizing thisnew position and the activities attend-ant upon it and the policies of the newPublications Committee are beingshaped with this in mind. The Boardof Directors of the Club has orderedthat the bulletin be published twelveinstead of eight times a year and thereis every hope that its value may bematerially increased.

It has been the privilege of manyScarab artists to exhibit their workin the mezzanine gallery at the Bon-stelle Playhouse and in April of thisyear the Club was pleased to entertainMiss Bonstelle and her company aftera performance. The interest of theScarab Club in the Detroit Civic The-ater which Miss Bonstelle is developingwith the Playhouse as a nucleus is abroader and deeper one than is im-plied in either the exhibition or socialphase. We feel that Miss Bonstelle'sideals regarding the theater are ana-logus to our own with the respect to allthe other arts represented in the ScarabClub and that it is to our advantageto assist in every possible way to bringher dream of a people's theater to asuccessful culmination.

This issue marks the beginning of anew volume, with a new PublicationsCommittee in charge. Too much praisecannot be given to Mr. Styles and thosewho have assisted him during the pastfour years in gradually building thebulletin into a dignified publication ofdefinite worth and interest. There canbe no doubt but that THE SCARAB isbecoming one of the best publicizingdevices at the command of the artistsof the Club and the present committeewill feel that it has been very success-ful if it is able to maintain the highstandard which has been set. Anycomments, criticisms, or suggestionswhich our members or readers care tomake will be very gratefully receivedat the Club office.

No explanation or comment is neces-sary with regard the note on ArminSeiffert and the Scripps-WhitconibScholarship. Not only was it of inter-est that the competition was won 'by aScarab member but the almost totalisolation of that award should be im-portant to all those who visualize De-troit as a possible art center.

T H E S C A R A B

The Recreation Sketch Class is inmany respects a parallel of severalsketch classes which the Scarab Clubhas fostered in the community centersof Detroit and the vicinity. And thefact that it is of a more civic naturedoes not lessen our responsibility in itsdevelopment.

This issue has been held up some-what owing to our desire to includethe result of the Union Trust Competi-tion. The Publications Committeewishes to take this opportunity of con-gratulating its fellow-member, Mr. E.L. Davidson, and his collaborator, Mr.Phil Sawyer.

ART AS RECREATIONQuite contrary to the dictum of that

ultra-aesthete, Roger Fry, the policyof the Scarab Extension Departmentis definitely directed toward puttingArt in the parlors of the bourgoisieand seeing it become a part of thedaily enjoyment of the ubiquitous"man in the street." This is said withno feeling of patronage whatsoever, butrather as one who knows that he hasa good thing might insist on sharingit with his friends—at a price. Andany evidence on the part of other peo-ple, either as individuals or as organi-zations, to bring a greater public tothe appreciation of beauty is of imme-diate interest and importance.

Thus it is that our recent contactswith the Art Class of the Detroit De-partment of Recreation appealed to usas coming very definitely within thesphere of Scarab interest. This artclass was started some eight or nineyears ago as one of the several meansemployed by the Recreation Depart-ment to bring to the less fortunatepeople of Detroit some idea of organ-ized play. Its main object is to offer

to those who have not the means topay for training in the regular artschools an opportunity for a little com-petent instruction and criticism. Itsresults are actually more varied and,generally speaking, more vital. Theseinclude not only the financial criticismmentioned above, but also allow peoplefor whom art could never be a profes-sion to take it in small doses as aform of recreation. Furthermore, thisclass brings to the direct attention ofsome three hundred or more peopleevery year not only the outward beautybut the historical background of manyof the best pieces in the Institute ofArt. This class supplements ratherthan attempts to parallel the artstudies in the public schools and at thesame time serves as a sort of clearinghouse from those with real capabilitiesleave for the more complete artschools.

Any one of these results would bereason enough for the existence of thisclass; the combination of them makesits support and further development aduty laid upon every art interestedcitizen. Individual members of theScarab Club have acted as judges andadvisors in several of the annual ex-hibitions held by the group, but itseems high time that something con-crete and definite be attempted by theScarab Club as a whole to assist thisvery important unit in the city's cul-tural education.

THE UNION TRUST COMPETITION

The text for any comment on theoutcome of the Union Trust Competi-tion might well be "And the last shallbe first."

Because of the impossibility of get-ting all the members of the committeeof award together sooner the judgingof the idea sketches was not made un-til June eleventh and the competitionwas left open until that date. Twelvedesigns had been received from thefollowing artists: Charles Barker, R.O. Bennett, Carl Robertz, Paul Honore,Conrad Lubnau, Robert McCallum,Steven Nastfogel, Philip Sawyer, Wai-

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ter Speck, and Sidney Walton, whenone of the architect members, ErnestI. Davidson, called the office and askedif there was still time for an entry.Being assured that there was, he setto work with a portrait painter, PhilSawyer, and turned in a sketch whichused much of the architectural detailof the New Union Trust Building asdecoration and the prevailing exteriorcolors as color notes.

The jury, which consisted of FrederickJ. Haynes, Fred M. Butzel, H. J. Max-

well Grylls, William F. Austin and E.L. Deacon, after very careful and tho-rough consideration of the thirteen en-tries chose the one submitted by Mr.Davidson and Mr. Sawyer.

The combination of an architect anda portrait painter is the last one fromwhom a winning design for a certifi-cate should be expected and the winnerwas the last one to be received at theClub. Yea, verily, the last shall beiirsr.

-%)' MEMBERSHIP '̂

The new membership blanks are ready. Thesemay be obtained at the Club Office or from ClydeII. Burroughs, Chairman Membership Committee.Proposals for membership will be accepted only onthe new blanks.

The following applicants were elected tomembership :

Associate ArtistA. J. Feinberg

Edwin F. BakerWayne YatesLay Member

Montgomery H. ParsonsSidney D. Chapman

Non-ResidentColin J. Cruickshank