Briarwood Arts Center: A Catalyst for Community Revitalization
Photo courtesy of Drew Dempsey/Tell Agency
After discovering a vacant building on a walk around the neighborhood picking up trash, founder and Jackson native Stephen Brown (also known as 5th Child) realized that his Briarwood Heights neighborhood and surrounding North Jackson needed an art-based community center that was accessible to all. Located in North Jackson off of the I-55 Frontage Road on Briarwood Drive, the building is west of the Briarwood Terrace neighborhood and directly across the street from the Briarwood Heights community. Brown took advantage of an opportunity to purchase the building, creating the Briarwood Arts Center. “We started to renovate, revitalize, and give it a new purpose so it could be something to serve the community,” said Brown.
BAC’s mission is to curate spaces that empower the next generation of Mississippi artists to create without barriers. This allows artists to connect with the local community to foster positive relationships, educate and give back. Brown is a changemaker who understands the importance of community revitalization and uses his given resources to bring ideas into reality.
“Everything we want this city to be, everything that we want to be able to accomplish and represent, we have all the tools,” said Brown. “And sometimes it just takes somebody showing you and bringing it to your attention that you don’t need outside influence or permission from other people. Have the audacity to say I’m going to be self-defined. That’s all we’re doing here.”
In the next 5 years, Brown plans for BAC’s outreach efforts to be free for all visitors. He also envisions it as an incubator for other organizations interested in repurposing properties in residential neighborhoods. “I want people to feel empowered to take over some of the blighted properties in their neighborhood.”
For more information about BAC and its programming, click here.
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