Dana Jones, 64, used art to inspire brain injury survivors

Dana Elizabeth Jones suffered a near-fatal stroke in 1991, but she didn't let it stop her from continuing to pursue her love of art.

She always had been right-handed, and her injury caused paralysis, loss of speech, and cognitive impairment. She was determined to create art even with just her left hand, said her husband, Stephen.

"At first, it was very abstract, then it became figurative, detailed, and then it was highly amazing," he said.

Mrs. Jones then became a passionate advocate for incorporating visual learning into brain injury recovery, traveling to local hospitals and nonprofits regularly to share her story, her husband said.

Mrs. Jones, 64, of Ardmore, died Oct. 10 in Delray Beach, Fla., of complications following a seizure in September.

She was born Dana Johnson in 1952 in Buffalo, N.Y. She graduated in 1973 from Goucher College in Baltimore, where she studied visual arts.

She worked at the Creative Department in Philadelphia and at James True Design in Washington before cofounding the Philadelphia-based graphic design firm Allemann, Almquist & Jones in 1983. After her stroke, she was bought out of the company, but remained close to its founders.

Following her injury, Mrs. Jones enrolled in a course at the Barnes Foundation, which she called a transformative experience. In a Barnes blog post, she wrote that the experience provided a "new perspective on my disability" that helped her focus on nonverbal, visual learning.

Her husband said the course's emphasis on "teaching to see" fit well with her experience as a graphic designer. "She liked studying the relationship between light, shape, color and form, as opposed to the specific subject matter. She really resonated with that," he said.

Mrs. Jones' work also was featured by Art Ability, a nonprofit group at Bryn Mawr Rehab Hospital in Malvern for artists with disabilities. Her work was selected for permanent display at the hospital.

At the time, she told Main Line Media News, "I believe each of us has to focus on what we have, not what we've lost," adding: "What can you imagine for yourself? We can dream; we can create; we can believe!"

In 2012, she spoke at a Brain Injury Association of Pennsylvania conference, discussing her experiences with art alongside her neurologist. She also won an award from the Fighting Back Scholarship Program in Malvern, which helps individuals in the Philadelphia area who have suffered life-changing injuries to enroll in a rehabilitative exercise program.

Mr. Jones said his wife wanted brain injury survivors to know that "art may not be for everyone, but there is going to be something from your former life to drive your recovery."

In addition to her husband, she is survived by a son, Nick; a daughter, Whitney; a sister, and a brother.

An art show in memory of Mrs. Jones is scheduled for noon to 4 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 19, at the University of the Arts.