Detroit, MI
Q&A: Donna Jackson is the new gallery manager of Detroit’s historic Scarab Club
A quaint and historic destination for visual, literary and performance art in Detroit, the Scarab Club announced Donna Jackson as the new gallery manager.
With more than 20 years of experience in design, project management and cultural programming in the city, Jackson says she’s looking forward to building on the legacy of the Scarab Club, which was founded in 1907, while creating new opportunities for artists and art lovers.
“We are delighted to welcome Donna Jackson to the Scarab Club,” said Scarab Club’s executive director Kathryn Dimond, in a press release announcing the appointment in March. “Her unique combination of artistic vision, marketing expertise, and commitment to community engagement makes her the ideal person to lead our gallery program into its next chapter.”
Read on for our recent conversation with Jackson, who is the first Black woman to manage the gallery for the Scarab Club. Questions and answers have been slightly edited for length and clarity.
Q: We know that you studied at Western Michigan University and the College for Creative Studies, but tell us a little bit more about where you grew up and how you started getting into art before your college days.
A: I’m born and bred here in Detroit. When I was growing up, it was just west side or east side, but I was in centralized Detroit. I actually went to Central High, so that probably helps a little bit. As far as I can remember, I always drew. I was a kind of timid kid, quiet kid. Even at 5 years old, I remember really drawing. It was something that allowed me to express myself being a quiet kid, and that just stayed with me throughout elementary, middle and even high school. It’s something that, again, allows me to just kind of be me, understand me as kind of a quieter, more introverted person. It’s been with me the whole time, and I don’t see that going away.
Q: Talk to us a bit about your personal history with the Scarab Club. You’ve curated events there and now you’re the gallery manager.
A: The first time I visited, there was most likely years before I understood what the Scarab Club was. I was at the Detroit Institute of Arts — and this is probably most people’s experience, is that you see this beautiful building across from the Detroit Institute of Arts, and you take a chance and you open the door and you’re going in and you’re amazed that all of these galleries are there. All these nice people are there, and all this art activity is happening in that space. From there, it was on my radar.
After that, I had done a couple of presentations there to focus on art and careers and just some of these basic things maybe artists need, like how to write a bio, how to get your CV together. So that was kind of my, in a more professional way, coming in there and not just a stalker of art in that space. Then I got an opportunity to curate an exhibition in 2022 or 2023 — during those COVID years it’s all kind of a blur, right — it was an exhibition featuring art based off of W.E.B. DuBois’ essay “The Souls of Black Folk” and being able to display works from local Detroiters, all Black artists, it was a really great experience. Really, truly, Scarab has been family since then. And now, here I am able to really direct what really happens in that gallery, and I’m so excited about that.
Q: Now that you are the gallery director, what are some of your plans for the near future?
A: So right now there are some things that are already on the schedule, so just working through some of those fabulous exhibitions that feature some of the things that go on in Detroit. We have an exhibition on an Iranian-American artist that’s coming up in the next month. We have an exhibition that’s really focusing on the hot artists that are up-and-coming, and just being able to display those folks and give them a space to be seen and to shine.
One that’s a favorite of mine is a poster exhibition, which is something I adore. I think posters are an amazing art media and artform. During the Month of Design we’ll be displaying posters from Detroit, of course, but also other areas like New York and L.A. and from all over the world. So that’s what’s coming up.
But as far as myself, as I get a chance to start working on like 2026 and 2027, I’m really interested in the things that make us human and those things that we have similarities in, and really kind of leaning into those stories of us, our humanity. There are a lot of identity exhibitions that I see, which are wonderful and they’re needed, especially now, but I also would like to lean into those things that are very much similar as a human being when you think about things like grief or work or laughter or happiness or loneliness or family. These are things that most all of us could in some way understand and have a perspective on. I would like to, through the arts, have more of those kinds of conversations that bring us together and see sameness and not just those things that may be different about each of us.
That what I’m hoping to get a chance to do while also celebrating our diversity because Metro Detroit is such an amazing space culturally. To ignore that would be a shame.
Q: The Gilda Snowden exhibit is wrapping up this weekend at the Scarab Club and it looks like the next big event is the Masquerade Ball on April 12. Can you tell us more about that?
A: The Masquerade Ball is an upcoming fundraiser that we are having at the Scarab club. You can come dressed up in your mask and have loads of fun, and at the same time you’re supporting Scarab Club and all the different things we do.
Visit scarabclub.org for more information on the upcoming ball and other events this spring and summer.
mbaetens@detroitnews.com
Detroit, MI
Air conditioner forecast: Metro Detroit heads into hot, sticky stretch
Metro Detroit is set to trade this weekend’s comfortable weather for a stretch of increasingly hot and humid conditions this week, with temperatures climbing into the upper 80s and lower 90s and humidity levels high enough to make it feel even warmer.
While Monday remains pleasant, the 4Warn Weather team is tracking a developing pattern that could bring rounds of showers and thunderstorms Tuesday through Thursday, followed by a period of heat that may pose health risks for some people.
The dry weather will hold through Monday before moisture surges northward ahead of a low-pressure system. That setup will lead to increasing clouds Monday night and a growing chance of showers and thunderstorms Tuesday.
The atmospheric moisture levels will be unusually high for June, meaning storms will be capable of producing locally heavy rainfall in a short amount of time Tuesday.
Metro Detroit will have daily chances for showers and thunderstorms through the week, but attention will also turn to the heat.
Temperatures are expected to soar to around 90 degrees Wednesday and the lower 90s Thursday across Metro Detroit, with muggy nights only falling into the upper 60s to lower 70s. Combined with dew points rising into the upper 60s and lower 70s, heat index values could climb well into the 90s to 100 degrees.
These values can create dangerous conditions for vulnerable populations, including older adults, young children, people with chronic health conditions and anyone working or exercising outdoors for extended periods.
After weeks of relatively mild temperatures, the human body has not yet fully acclimated to summer heat, making heat-related illnesses more likely.
Heat Safety
People are encouraged to begin practicing heat safety habits now:
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Drink water regularly, even before feeling thirsty.
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Limit strenuous outdoor activity during the hottest part of the afternoon.
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Wear lightweight, light-colored clothing.
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Take frequent breaks in air-conditioned spaces.
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Never leave children or pets in vehicles.
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Check on elderly neighbors and relatives.
The hottest day of the stretch is likely to be Thursday, when Metro Detroit could reach the lower 90s. Depending on sunshine and thunderstorm coverage, a few communities may push even higher.
For residents of the Thumb, temperatures will be somewhat cooler thanks to the moderating influence of Lake Huron. Highs there are expected to remain largely in the lower to middle 80s during the warmest part of the week.
Thunderstorm chances continue through Thursday and could briefly interrupt the heat. However, any breaks are expected to be short-lived, and many locations will spend much of the week feeling decidedly summerlike.
By Friday and next weekend, temperatures may ease slightly back into the upper 80s, although isolated showers and thunderstorms remain possible.
Share your weather photos and how you’re staying cool with Local 4 at MIPics.
Copyright 2026 by WDIV ClickOnDetroit – All rights reserved.
Detroit, MI
2 men dead in unrelated overnight Detroit shootings
DETROIT (WXYZ) — Two men are dead after being shot in the early morning hours of Sunday, in what police say were separate incidents.
Both shootings took place in between 3 a.m. and 3:30 a.m. We’re told that one shooting happened in the 19000 block of Kelly Road on Detroit’s east side, and the other happened in the 8700 block of Quincy Street on Detroit’s west side.
Authorities say that the circumstances that led up to each of these shootings are unknown. No suspects have been arrested in relation to these cases.
Detroit, MI
Hundreds gather for rally against gun violence on Detroit’s east side
Community violence intervention groups, local organizations and law enforcement partners joined forces on Saturday to send a message that it’s time to put an end to gun violence in Detroit.
Hundreds attended the annual Silence the Violence rally on the city’s east side. One of the event’s participants, Latina Mack, is a member of the community violence intervention group Force Detroit.
“I combine myself with Force Detroit to be able to help these kids, to give them the resources, to provide opportunities for them, to do things that they have never done before,” Mack said.
In 2023, her 17-year-old son, Elijah, was killed in an accidental shooting.
“My son’s death prompted me to want to do more. I just didn’t want anybody else to go through what I go through on a regular basis. Sometimes that’s the biggest thing, just showing up and letting people know I’m here.” Mack said.
Organizers say the rally and march are about honoring those lost to gun violence, bringing awareness to ongoing struggles and showing support to those who need it.
“It’s very, very important to the survivors, and it’s more than just the survivors as it relates to the families, but the whole community is surviving this stuff because they seen it,” Dujuan Zoe Kennedy, executive director, Force Detroit, said.
Kennedy added that when it comes to gun violence, if you can predict it, you can prevent it.
“We know the root causes of violence are poverty. We know the root causes of violence are psychological, emotional and mental wellness. So we have to provide those things, we have to be there, we have to be trauma-informed and we have to operate and provide economic mobility,” Kennedy said.
One example of a community violence intervention success is Jordan Owens.
“I got a lot of good mentorship, and a lot of good guidance from them and I feel like I’m going down a better path,” Owens said.
The 16-year-old was arrested with a gun just a few years ago.
“I wasn’t necessarily beefing with people doing that, but people were in my neighborhood getting robbed, killed, hurt and I felt like I just needed protection at my age. I felt like I didn’t have nobody to protect me and I felt like I had to do it myself,” Owens said.
Now he realizes that’s not the case.
“It’s more to life than just all of this stuff in the neighborhoods and all of that. We all have the opportunity to change our lives and do better, and you just have to want that change for yourself.”
Owens has become an entrepreneur, starting both landscaping and car detailing services.
“I’d love to be a good community member, speaking to the youth and stuff like that, and doing more stuff like this. And I just want to go to college, continue with my businesses,” Owens said.
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