CORNELIA, Ga. — The City of Cornelia has been selected as one of five Georgia communities to participate in the Red Clay Creative Cohort, a statewide creative placemaking initiative supported by the Georgia Council for the Arts and Springboard for the Arts.
As part of the program, Cornelia will receive $20,000 in project funding, along with training and technical support for community-based creative initiatives that will be developed and implemented between June and October 2026.
The application and project proposal were written and developed by Audrey Davenport, owner of Soque Street LLC – Creative Community Development, who will also serve as project manager and lead coordinator for Cornelia’s cohort team.
Davenport assembled a cross-disciplinary leadership team designed to represent a broad range of community interests and creative perspectives. The group includes artists, educators, hospitality professionals, wellness advocates, cultural leaders and small business owners.
Local participants include Ani Darcey, a dancer and fitness instructor; Renetha Gipson, an event planner; Gail Williams of Williams Homestyle Catering; Joni Mabe, an artist affiliated with the Loudermilk Boarding house Museum; Becky Murphy, an artist and art teacher at Cornelia Elementary School; and Juana Gembe, artist and owner of Lolita’s Bakery.
The project also includes several collaborators from Davenport’s broader professional network. Those participants include Imani Spence of Lawrenceville, a Piedmont University art alumna, as well as Margaret Sullivan and Jenny Lau of Margaret Sullivan Studio in New York City.
The Red Clay Creative Cohort supports creative placemaking efforts designed to strengthen community identity, encourage collaboration, support local culture and tourism, and create new opportunities for community engagement through the arts.
City officials view the selection as an opportunity to further position Cornelia as a community that embraces creativity, local leadership and innovative approaches to community and economic development.
The statewide initiative seeks to help participating communities use arts and culture as tools for community building, economic vitality and civic engagement.
