Griot Arts

Former JC Penny Building - Clarksdale, Mississippi

In collaboration with Architect Ngozi Brown of firm NOB A+D and with Natalie Biles and Stacey Breezeel of Shine Interior Design Studios, the rehabilitation of the historic JC Penney Building (1918) and Paramount Theater on Yazoo Avenue in Clarksdale for local nonprofit Griot Arts is led by design firm Kudzu Collective.  Architects Ryan Biles and Amoz Eckerson of Eckerson Architecture have begun Phase 1 design work to stabilize portions of the existing roof and structure in the most severe condition.  Concurrently, Architect Ngozi Brown is working with Griot Arts to imagine and design an interpretive experience around the historically segregated theater entry for which the design team led two community listening sessions to gather memories and perspectives of individual experiences associated with the facility.  In 2022, a preliminary study funded by the Phil Hardin Foundation was completed, providing preliminary programming and concept planning for the over 52,000 SF of space encompassed by the complex.