Jane Perkins

I am a ‘re-maker’, taking inspiration from found objects and working them into something new. I love art with an element of fun and the unexpected, and hope my work will make you smile!

I was born in 1958 and grew up near London. I now live in Devon, UK. After 17 years in nursing, I enjoyed a career break to raise my children and then took a degree in Textiles, graduating in 2006. I discovered my quirky side! I found excitement in using materials with a history, and a love of art with an element of fun and the unexpected. While researching my degree thesis on Art from Recycled Materials, I discovered images of religious festival headdresses from Ecuador. These were so bizarre – decorated with a crazy mixture of random found objects: broken jewellery, shells, dolls, light bulbs, coins etc. I loved them. The headdresses became the inspiration for my final year project – a collection of hand-stitched brooches embellished with a variety of small found objects.

While making the brooches, I collected lots of materials which were too big to be used. One day, about a year after completing my degree, the idea of making a portrait just came into my head. A new direction was born I use any materials of the right size, shape and colour: toys, shells buttons, plastic cutlery, beads, broken jewellery, etc. No colour is added – everything is used ‘as found’. After making many portraits, I started creating Plastic Classics, followed by a series of animals and birds.