S. Thomas Scarff

January 5, 1942 — April 1, 2024

Tom Scarff passed away on Monday, April 1, 2024, at his Michigan City, Indiana home and studio.

He was born in Mount Pleasant, Iowa, to his parents, the late Lawrence and Mary Margaret (Ewart) Scarff, before moving to Chicago to study fine art at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.

Surviving are a daughter, Siena (Charles Waldheim) Scarff of Cambridge, MA and New York City; son, Seaton Scarff of Chicago, IL; five grandchildren, Clara Waldheim, Miles Scarff, Michael Fejer, Nicholas Fejer, Matthew Fejer; great-grandchildren, Blaze, Starla ; sister, Marianna Scarff McKee of Springfield, MA; and brother, David (Hope) Scarff of Mount Pleasant, IA.

He was also preceded in death by son, Anthony Feijer and older brother Ewart Scarff.

Over a four-decade career as an artist, he established a national reputation for his large-scale sculpture, and he innovated in the incorporation of lighting into sculptural work. His work was exhibited in several prominent venues, including the Museum of Contemporary Art, the Art Institute of Chicago, the Museum of Science and Industry, and various public art programs. He was also Odyssey curator emeritus for Purdue University for 18 years. His work was recognized with many awards and honors nationally, including multiple grants from the National Endowment for the Arts. Tom practiced out of the Sedgwick Studio, a collective workspace supporting the work of several artists in Chicago’s Old Town neighborhood. Over the past decade, he spent more time in his painting studio on the beach at Michigan City where he enjoyed the view of the lake and Chicago skyline on the Western horizon.

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