You Probably Won’t Go Out to Eat After Seeing the Scarab Club’s Latest Art Show

Health inspector-turned-photographer Agnes Gira spent 25 years seeing the worst of Detroit restaurant kitchens. Now it’s a stunning exhibition at one of the city’s oldest art institutions.

Agnes Gira

Click the audio player above to hear the full conversation. CultureShift airs weekdays 12 p.m. to 2 p.m. on 101.9 WDETFM Detroit public radio.

Agnes Gira spent 25 years as a health inspector for the City of Detroit.

She’d take photos of the health code violations she saw to help train and educate other inspectors on what to look for.

Now her photographs are taking on a new life as part of a new art exhibition at one of the city’s oldest art institutions the Scarab Club.

“The Other Dirty Show” is a peek into the kitchens of local restaurants—and you might want to eat before you check it out.

CultureShift’s Ryan Patrick Hooper speaks with Scarab Club director MaryAnn Wilkinson about the exhibition.

Wilkinson describes Gira’s work as still-life artwork “with an edge.” 

“Talented photographers are able to see and compose an image out of just about anything and that’s one thing that makes (this exhibit) really interesting,” says Wilkinson.

The exhibit opens on Friday, January 11th and runs through February 16th.

Click on the audio player above to hear Scarab Club director MaryAnn Wilkinson talking about the club’s latest art exhibition, “The Other Dirty Show.” 

 

 

Author

  • Ryan Patrick Hooper
    Ryan Patrick Hooper is the award-winning host and producer of CultureShift on 101.9 WDET-FM Detroit’s NPR station. Hooper has covered stories for the New York Times, NPR, Detroit Free Press, Hour Detroit, SPIN and Paste magazine.