The Four Arts raised money and bought the land across from the Singer Building to construct its first building (now the King Library). Architect Maurice Fatio and his firm Treanor & Fatio generously donated their services. Fatio's designs are characterized by a variety of European influences, from Mediterranean palaces to British Colonial mansions.
The Fatio building opened on January 8, 1938. It was multi-functional with spaces for lectures, concerts, art exhibitions, family and children's activities, and educational programs. Members and staff soon began collecting books to create a library, which was established on the second floor. Architect Maitland Belknap designed the bookcases and cabinetry for the library, which was dedicated on February 10, 1940. At this time, The Historical Society of Palm Beach County, which was founded in 1937, began housing its offices and collection in the library. The Historical Society later moved to Whitehall, Henry Flagler's Gilded Age estate in Palm Beach (now the Flagler Museum) in the 1960s.
The Society of the Four Arts' Maurice Fatio building, 1937.
Interior of the Maurice Fatio building, 1938.
Photo of Maurice Fatio.