Duane Jones (MIM’14) works in information management and communications for Dal’s Faculty of Medicine, but this is just one his identities. He’s also an artist, designer (his clothing line is “Art Pays Me”), podcaster, co-chair of Canadian Art Foundation, and father. His interests may be many but they share a common focus – sharing ideas and building community.
8 a.m. I just finished walking and feeding my Labradoodle boys (Zeke and Oreo) and I’m making a traditional Bermudian Sunday breakfast of codfish and potatoes for the fam.
10 a.m. I start prepping for a visit to the George Dixon Centre on Brunswick Street in Halifax. I won an open call to design a public art piece there that merges my passion for art, design, and basketball into one. The piece will be applied to three basketball courts and is part of a revitalization project to celebrate the rich history of Uniacke Square and the community’s deep love for basketball. My oldest daughter, Ava, wants to explore a career in art and has collaborated with me on a mural for the Halifax Mural Festival. I want them to be able to see firsthand what that kind of a life can look like.
CBC News: Halifax artist designs courts as part of dream project for Canada Basketball
1 p.m. I head home to grab a quick lunch and ask my youngest daughter, Ella, if she wants to shoot some hoops with me at the court on our street. She’s been playing since the age of five, but recently started playing competitively and it’s fun watching her develop the same obsession for the game that I have.
5 p.m. Natasha (my wife) and I start planning supper and decide to order a combo pizza from Kenny’s. Combo is a classic Cape Breton topping mix she introduced me to that consists of mushrooms, green pepper and pepperoni.
7:30 p.m. After supper I squeeze in an hour or two of editing a series of interviews with the winners of the 2023 Creative Nova Scotia Awards for the Art Pays Me podcast.
Related listening: Art Pays Me postcast
10 p.m. Natasha and I are on the couch and watching the latest episode of Sunday night HBO “prestige tv.”
6:30 a.m. Zeke and Oreo are up and raring to go on their walk, so I take them and start preparing for my day job in the Faculty of Medicine.
This story appeared in the DAL Magazine Fall 2024 issue. Flip through the rest of the issue using the links below.