On Valentine’s Day, residents gathered at the Ballard Center in Cornelia for a Brushstrokes of Change workshop led by Audrey Davenport. From noon to 5 p.m., participants shared stories of loved ones, family traditions and neighborhood life, contributing memories that will shape a series of murals planned for the fence at Jim Smith Park.
Brushstrokes of Change treats public art as a civic process. Rather than presenting a finished design, Davenport invites the community to build one together. She asks for details — a phrase from a poem, a game once played in the park, a church across the street, a stove that kept hands warm on a stark winter’s day. From those details, she extracts symbols. From those symbols, she builds layered imagery.
The Valentine’s gathering centered on love and remembrance. Davenport spoke of her sister, Tanya, who was born on Valentine’s Day and died at 15. She shared poetry and photographs as proof that memory survives through art. Participants wrote reflections and described the people who shaped them. The workshop turned those recollections into visual concepts that will appear on large panels.
Tables lined the room with photographs, historical displays and writing materials. Organizers offered small snacks and gifts — lotions, hair barrettes, and candy — reinforcing the day’s theme of care. Conversation moved from personal stories to shared history as attendees identified recurring images tied to faith, education, recreation, and family life in Cornelia’s historically Black neighborhoods.
The finished murals will line the fence at Jim Smith Park. Through participation, the project invites residents to make new history while preserving the old.
