Art Pays Me

Musician, Morgan Toney discusses musical journey and why it's vital that young people preserve Indigenous culture and language. Toney also shares his creative process, drawing inspiration from nature and the importance of creating a comfortable and focused environment.

The Creative Nova Scotia Awards are presented by Arts Nova Scotia and the Creative Nova Scotia Leadership Council to celebrate artistic excellence across Mi'kma'ki.

Award categories are as follows:

• Creative Community Impact
• Prix Grand-Pré
• Established Artist
• Emerging Artist
• Black Artist
• Indigenous Artist
• The Portia White Prize

Collectively, the awards are worth $75,000! Visit http://artsns.ca/ for more information.

This series would not be possible without the fantastic production work of Heist and Keke Beatz.

Multidisciplinary artist, Christopher Webb discusses the early influence his grandmother had on him when she introduced him to oil painting at age three. Our conversation explores the intersection of art, business, and collaboration as Christopher reflects on significant projects, including selling artwork on the waterfront and a pivotal show with his friend Lennett Anderson. While acknowledging past achievements, Webb expresses excitement about his current work, future projects and lack of a traditional retirement plan.

Christopher finds inspiration in his family's immigration story – making works that explore themes of identity, belonging, and the sacrifices made by his ancestors. He also reflects on the importance of preserving family traditions and recipes, as they evolve and adapt over time.

The Creative Nova Scotia Awards are presented by Arts Nova Scotia and the Creative Nova Scotia Leadership Council to celebrate artistic excellence across Mi'kma'ki.

Award categories are as follows:

• Creative Community Impact
• Prix Grand-Pré
• Established Artist
• Emerging Artist
• Black Artist
• Indigenous Artist
• The Portia White Prize

Collectively, the awards are worth $75,000! Visit http://artsns.ca/ for more information.

This series would not be possible without the fantastic production work of Heist and Keke Beatz.

Storyteller and filmmaker Solomon Nagler discusses his artistic journey and the importance of collaboration and community in his work. He emphasizes the grassroots nature of the Nova Scotia art scene – highlighting the support he has received from local film co-ops and fellow artists. Solomon also reflects on the healing power of art and the value of community-based projects that allow for shared learning and storytelling.

The filmmaker finds inspiration in the unique places and communities of Nova Scotia, often incorporating local history and folklore into his work. Solomon values the collaborative nature of filmmaking, working with emerging artists and embracing chance encounters that enhance the storytelling process and hopes his work will evoke a visceral response in audiences that transcends time and cultural barriers.

The Creative Nova Scotia Awards are presented by Arts Nova Scotia and the Creative Nova Scotia Leadership Council to celebrate artistic excellence across Mi'kma'ki.

Award categories are as follows:

• Creative Community Impact
• Prix Grand-Pré
• Established Artist
• Emerging Artist
• Black Artist
• Indigenous Artist
• The Portia White Prize

Collectively, the awards are worth $75,000! Visit http://artsns.ca/ for more information.

This series would not be possible without the fantastic production work of Heist and Keke Beatz.

Halifax, Nova Scotia based filmmaker Leah Johnston discusses her artistic journey and creative process – sharing how a vocal surgery ended her singing career but led her to filmmaking. Johnston emphasizes the importance of patience and openness in finding inspiration for her films, often drawing from personal experiences and merging ideas over time.

Leah values the support of institutions in Canada that foster culture and provide funding for film projects, making filmmakers in Canada less reliant on personal savings and investments. Leah also emphasizes the importance of having the time and space to develop scripts and ideas, and acknowledges the challenges of being a director – including the gruelling nature of being on set and making crucial decisions.

The Creative Nova Scotia Awards are presented by Arts Nova Scotia and the Creative Nova Scotia Leadership Council to celebrate artistic excellence across Mi'kma'ki.

Award categories are as follows:

• Creative Community Impact
• Prix Grand-Pré
• Established Artist
• Emerging Artist
• Black Artist
• Indigenous Artist
• The Portia White Prize

Collectively, the awards are worth $75,000! Visit http://artsns.ca/ for more information.

This series would not be possible without the fantastic production work of Heist and Keke Beatz.

Duane welcomed Writer and Performer, Lee-Anne Poole to discuss her residency at Pavia Gallery.

Lee-Anne is the author of 7 produced plays, her first full-length play, Splinters, has been adapted into a feature film by Thom Fitzgerald. Splinters premiered at The Toronto International Film Festival and was the Opening Night Gala presentation at The Atlantic Film Festival. Lee-Anne was featured in Hustling Verse: An Anthology of Sex Workers' Poetry and attended the BANFF Centre for a 3-week-long writing residency where she explored adapting her play Talk Sexxxy. Talk Sexxxy ran in January 2025 at the Saint Mary's University Art Gallery. Upcoming, she is writing a combination of zines and performance projects. Sometimes she knits and sometimes she is a playwright learning how to draw. She lives in Herring Cove with her two dogs – who will bark at you.

Cartoonist, illustrator and novelist Vivian Zhou discusses her creative process, influences, and experiences – emphasizing the importance of daydreaming and quiet time for developing stories. Vivian also highlights the value of having an agent to navigate the publishing industry and maintain creative control over her work.

The Creative Nova Scotia Awards are presented by Arts Nova Scotia and the Creative Nova Scotia Leadership Council to celebrate artistic excellence across Mi'kma'ki.

Award categories are as follows:

• Creative Community Impact
• Prix Grand-Pré
• Established Artist
• Emerging Artist
• Black Artist
• Indigenous Artist
• The Portia White Prize

Collectively, the awards are worth $75,000! Visit http://artsns.ca/ for more information.

This series would not be possible without the fantastic production work of Heist and Keke Beatz.

Return guest Christopher Webb joined me to chat about artist residencies and the residency that he hosts out of Pavia Gallery in Herring Cove, Nova Scotia. This conversation took place in July 2025.

Welcome to a special series of Art Pays Me interviews with the winners of the 2025 Creative Nova Scotia Awards. Presented annually by Arts Nova Scotia and the Creative Nova Scotia Leadership Council, these awards celebrate artistic excellence across Mi'kma'ki.

Award categories are as follows:

• Creative Community Impact
• Prix Grand-Pré
• Established Artist
• Emerging Artist
• Black Artist
• Indigenous Artist
• And finally, The Portia White Prize that is given to a person who has made outstanding and significant contributions to Nova Scotia's creative community over a sustained career – much like the incredible woman that the award is named after. The winner will also choose a protege, an emerging artist or cultural organization that will also receive funding.

Collectively, the awards are worth $75,000! Visit http://artsns.ca/ for more information.

This series would not be possible without the fantastic production work of Heist and Keke Beatz.

https://artpaysme.com/

About Nicola

Saxophonist and Composer Nicola Miller (she/her) is based on the South Shore of Nova Scotia, where she has become a vital part of the maritime creative music ecosystem. Weaving endless sonic curiosity into a jazz foundation, the music she plays and writes effortlessly traverses boundaries of style and approach. Miller has appeared in performances alongside a diverse cross-section of artists including Nicole Rampersaud, Charlotte Hüg, Terri Hron, India Gailey, Enrique Luna, Sam Wilson, Uri Caine, Tim Crofts, Glenn Patscha, and Nick Halley. She's been featured at the Open Waters Guelph and Halifax Jazz Festivals and also performed in contexts that span Berlin's Volksbühne and Jazz Am Helmholtzplatz to Acadia University's Physics Department. She is the winner of the 2025 Paul Cram Award and will be debuting her first piece for symphony in January of 2026 with Symphony NS.

Welcome to a special series of Art Pays Me interviews with the winners of the 2025 Creative Nova Scotia Awards. Presented annually by Arts Nova Scotia and the Creative Nova Scotia Leadership Council, these awards celebrate artistic excellence across Mi'kma'ki.

Award categories are as follows:

• Creative Community Impact
• Prix Grand-Pré
• Established Artist
• Emerging Artist
• Black Artist
• Indigenous Artist
• And finally, The Portia White Prize that is given to a person who has made outstanding and significant contributions to Nova Scotia's creative community over a sustained career – much like the incredible woman that the award is named after. The winner will also choose a protege, an emerging artist or cultural organization that will also receive funding.

Collectively, the awards are worth $75,000! Visit http://artsns.ca/ to nominate your favourite Nova Scotian artist or nominate yourself!

This series would not be possible without the fantastic production work of Heist and Keke Beatz.

https://artpaysme.com/

Aquakultre is the artistic voice of Lance Sampson — an uncommonly versatile singer, rapper, composer and storyteller from Halifax, NS. Since winning the 2018 CBC Searchlight competition, Aquakultre has released two Polaris-nominated albums and a multitude of genre-diverse, multi-media collaborations, establishing him as a significant musical and cultural presence. The live show is a warm-hearted party where all are welcomed by Aquakultre's big voice and bigger stage presence. Through all his works, via poetic lyrics and straight-up jams, Aquakultre is on a mission to share his love for his unique and beautiful corner of the culture.

On this episode, I chat with Cairista MacIsaac about ArtWorks East (AWE). AWE is an association of visual artists and crafters who live in Guysborough County that was founded in 2019. They welcome local artisans of all ages and levels of experience as well as those who want to support the visual arts in their area.

Jaclyn represents fast-growing, people-focused competitive brands who are addressing the evolving consumer market. She tells stories across all media platforms for partners in industries spanning art, fashion, beauty, health & wellness, Consumer packaging goods, technology and home. Most notably having worked with Vega, Saje Natural Wellness, Russell Wilson and Ciara's fashion brand The House of LR&C, and Lyft as the first hire for the rideshare brand in British Columbia. She can be described as someone with the competitiveness of an alumni basketball player with the curiosity of a writer and aspiring disco DJ who brings big ideas to brands that do good work and win.

Welcome to a special series of Art Pays Me interviews with the winners of the 2024 Creative Nova Scotia Awards. Presented annually by Arts Nova Scotia and the Creative Nova Scotia Leadership Council, these awards celebrate artistic excellence across Mi'kma'ki.

Alan Syliboy grew up believing that native art was generic. "As a youth, I found painting difficult and painful, because I was unsure of my identity." But his confidence grew in 1972 when he studied privately with Shirley Bear. He then attended the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design, where 25 years later, he was invited to sit on the Board of Governors. Syliboy looked to the indigenous Mi'kmaq petroglyph tradition for inspiration and developed his own artistic vocabulary out of those forms. His popularization of these symbolic icons has conferred on them a mainstream legitimacy that restores community pride in its Mi'kmaq heritage.

Alan still lives and works in Millbrook, NS, where he was born and raised. He creates his art in his studio in Truro, NS.

This special episode would not be possible without the support of Arts Nova Scotia and the Creative Nova Scotia Leadership Council, and the fantastic production work of Heist and Keke Beatz.

Ariana Roberts is a Canadian makeup artist, currently based in Halifax, working primarily in film and TV. Born in Edmonton, and raised in Baltimore, Halifax and two years in Bolgatanga, Ghana. While pursuing a double major in Linguistics and Anthropology at Concordia University in Montréal, she decided to switch gears and went to makeup school at the Blanche MacDonald Centre in Vancouver. She quickly moved to Toronto and worked her way into the indie film industry, cutting her teeth working largely on horror films. After a break from film, she ended up back in Halifax and back in the film industry.

Welcome to a special series of Art Pays Me interviews with the winners of the 2024 Creative Nova Scotia Awards. Presented annually by Arts Nova Scotia and the Creative Nova Scotia Leadership Council, these awards celebrate artistic excellence across Mi'kma'ki.

Tim Crofts is a first generation Canadian of British and Indian descent. He is an improviser, a traditional non-traditionalist, and/or a non-traditional traditionalist. Tim explores the full sonic capabilities of the acoustic piano through extended techniques and a wide range of piano preparations. He is able to coax a variety of colour and extreme dynamic contrast through employing traditional and non-traditional techniques in tandem. He has performed in numerous settings and collaborated with numerous new music, and improvised organizations including suddenlyLISTEN, Upstream, and the Creative Music Workshop. Crofts is also committed to teaching and mentoring in creative music, and the development of a personal voice.

This special episode would not be possible without the support of Arts Nova Scotia and the Creative Nova Scotia Leadership Council, and the fantastic production work of Heist and Keke Beatz.

Welcome to a special series of Art Pays Me interviews with the winners of the 2024 Creative Nova Scotia Awards. Presented annually by Arts Nova Scotia and the Creative Nova Scotia Leadership Council, these awards celebrate artistic excellence across Mi'kma'ki.

On this episode I spoke with musician and Prix Grand-Pré recipient, Robert Deveaux.

This special episode would not be possible without the support of Arts Nova Scotia and the Creative Nova Scotia Leadership Council, and the fantastic production work of Heist and Keke Beatz.

Welcome to a special series of Art Pays Me interviews with the winners of the 2024 Creative Nova Scotia Awards. Presented annually by Arts Nova Scotia and the Creative Nova Scotia Leadership Council, these awards celebrate artistic excellence across Mi'kma'ki.

On this episode I spoke with Emerging Artist Award recipient, Lux Gow-Habrich (星尘), a multidisciplinary visual artist, facilitator and support worker of mixed second-generation Chinese and German heritage, practicing between Tkarón:to (Toronto, ON) and Kjipuktuk (Halifax, NS).

They blend gestural, craft and creative community practices to redefine our understanding of art and cultural praxis as sacred remedial forces that can deeply transform and mend systems and relationships. Lux's interest in the body as archive, cultural objects and commemorative practices weave together complex diasporic experiences of loss and belonging, and embodied hybridization in blood and spirit - to unearth individual and collective untold stories and unspoken legacies of disabled, queer grief and empowerment. Committed to developing inclusive creative platforms, and reimagining cultural futures, Lux's practice is an expression rooted in relational and access dreaming.

This special episode would not be possible without the support of Arts Nova Scotia and the Creative Nova Scotia Leadership Council, and the fantastic production work of Heist and Keke Beatz.

Andrea Tsang Jackson is a textile artist, quilt designer, author and educator. After working in various design fields and settings ranging from architecture to museums, the quilting medium called to her as a way to explore place, belonging, and agency.

Andrea and I have now become good art friends since her first appearance on the show. This time we talked about her new book, Quilting: A Modern Creative Journey through an Age-Old Craft, making public art and a collaboration we have in the works.

Chanelle Jefferson is a Canadian mixed media artist and counsellor whose work explores themes of healing, emotion, and connection. Her art has been exhibited internationally, including at Museo Bellini (Florence, Italy), and is held in private collections such as those of Pete Luckett and the MacKay-Lyons family. She was the 2023 Artist-in-Residence at the Lunenburg School of the Arts, where she deepened her exploration of intuitive art. Through The Grief Project and commissioned works, Chanelle continues to push the boundaries of how art can hold space for transformation.

Welcome to a special series of Art Pays Me interviews with the winners of the 2024 Creative Nova Scotia Awards. Presented annually by Arts Nova Scotia and the Creative Nova Scotia Leadership Council, these awards celebrate artistic excellence across Mi'kma'ki. This would not be possible without the fantastic production work of Heist and Keke Beatz.

On this episode I spoke with 2024 Indigenous Artist recognition Award recipient, Stephanie Joline, an Indigenous filmmaker based in Halifax, Nova Scotia. This is Stephanie's second time on the show so it was great to catch up with her and get vulnerable about feeling like an outsider and deserving of awards.

Equally adept at film and television, Stephanie's stories provoke conversation, break boundaries, and are deeply rooted in inclusivity and feminism. Her feature films include Night Blooms (2022), a coming-of-age story set in the 1990s, and Play Your Gender (2016), a documentary that pulls back the curtain on gender bias in the music industry. Stephanie has also directed for television and streaming platforms; (Women of This Land 2024, CBC; Words Matter 2022, CBC Gem; Stream Me 2020, Amazon Prime; Farm Crime 2020, CBC Gem; Spirit Talker 2019, APTN).

In 2020, she was awarded the Irving Avrich Award from TIFF, recognizing rising Canadian talent. The following year, she was long-listed for the DGC Discovery Award, and in 2022, she received Best Nova Scotia Director from Women in Film and TV Atlantic and won her first Canadian Screen Award for directing in the factual television category.

Stephanie's newest releases include I Place You Into the Fire, which weaves together documentary and animation as Mi'kmaw poet Rebecca Thomas illuminates the ongoing impact of colonization and shares insight into her world as an Indigenous artist. Brought to life by three Indigenous illustrators, the film offers a poignant exploration of empathy and justice.

And Women of This Land, a documentary series that spotlights the resilience and cultural richness of Indigenous women in Atlantic Canada as they share their stories of connection to land and heritage.

Aux Tale Gravy Music Group is a Toronto-based record label, dedicated to developing richness, shifting the culture and changing the status quo in world music. From their cookhouse to the world, Aux Tale Gravy's dynamic team shares a signature 'one pot' recipe of simmering spices, serving a variety of cultural music dishes that 'feed the people', everywhere. Aux Tale Gravy is passionate about working with an authentic roster of artists, creating lasting 'legacy work' preserving unique sounds in an international commercial music landscape.

Our conversation revolves around the formation and vision of Aux Tale Gravy their roots in Nova Scotia. The label, founded by Reid, NIV, and Kayla, aims to support artists from diverse backgrounds, particularly those from Black and Brown communities. They emphasize a strategic approach to marketing, focusing on authenticity and cultural heritage. The label's name, Aux Tale, symbolizes elevating artists from humble beginnings to prominence. They are currently in a niche selection process for new artists, prioritizing those who align with their vision. The discussion also touches on the importance of ethical practices, teamwork, maintaining authenticity and their artist Siddartha.