It's a dog's life

By Jo Irving
BBC Devon

Starry Sea by Jane Burt

Jane Burt is really keen on recycling and you can see it in a lot of her artwork.

From her greenhouse made out of plastic bottles to her dog on a surfboard, Jane says she tries to use everything up.

"I never throw food away. I'm a vegetarian and I have a big household so I always manage to rustle something up from what's left in the fridge."

Her motto of 'make do and mend' can be seen in much of her work - from her paintings to her installations.

Jane moved to Teignmouth 15 years ago and wanted to meet more people.

A friend told her about the local rowing club and she's been going there ever since - at least two or three times a week.

It's not only a way of keeping fit and making friends but a source of inspiration too.

Jane gets much of her inspiration from the Teign estuary

"I love it when it's rough out on the Teign estuary.

"You just get a feeling for the elements and the weather and you sort of absorb the atmosphere."

Mood and elements are certainly captured in her many land and seascapes.

"If I see a lovely peachy sky at night or a dark sky with hayfields in it, then the contrast is what I can use in my pictures."

She graduated from Plymouth College of Art and Design a decade ago and since then has managed to exhibit her work in not only the South West but in South Wales and Britanny too.

Her latest solo exhibition is Torbay Hospital's The Gallery - where her large and lively flowers and landscapes are on show.

But many people will remember her for her greenhouse made out of recycled plastic bottles or her dog on a surfboard.

Jane's Green Green House

Both pieces were made from things which were being thrown away.

"I found the dog in a hedge on the way home one day and put it on the handlebars of my bike.

"It just took a pair of sunglasses and my son's old surfboard."

And that's how 'It's a Dog's Life' was created!

At the moment her focus is on her sculptures - figures which stand about a foot high.

"I love the human form, but I need a bigger kiln so I can make bigger sculptures."

More than 30 pieces of Jane's lively and colourful work will be on show in the hospital's gallery until the end of October.