MANY people talk of love, but few demonstrate it outside their immediate circles.

But Aruna Mene – a doctor turned artist – lives by her principles and donates all the proceeds of her art to charities here and abroad.

Aruna – who worked at Royal Blackburn Hospital as a consultant histopathologist for 27 years until she retired this year – is staging a one-woman exhibition of her distinctive fabric collages at Samlesbury Hall until July 22.

“I sell quite a lot of my work, but I only keep enough to pay for the materials. I don’t need the money because as a doctor I’m comfortably off. Many people do need it, however. I’ve seen at first hand the areas of the NHS that need funding and there is poverty on a world wide scale, particularly in India where so many people are destitute. I love what I do, but I also love the fact that I can help others by doing it. I get a great deal of satisfaction from that.”

Aruna’s work is a riot of colour – an influence from her Indian homeland. As a child in Nagpur she would sit for hours painting and experimenting with the vibrant colours surrounding her. Her mother used to sew richly coloured fabrics and quilting was her speciality. Years later, those childhood influences have turned into a full-time career.

“With my fabric collages I hope to convey the joy of living, optimism and to celebrate life. These happy collages are inspired by the enchanting natural world, love, romance and passion. I love the British countryside, and in some of my collages I have depicted nature’s bounty which is freely available to everyone. I love to travel to exotic destinations, and these magical places, such as Bali, Zanzibar, Tanzania, Madagascar and Mauritius, have also inspired me.”

Aruna, who lives in Bolton with her retired GP husband Ravi, is also inspired by humanity. The idea of combining her former daytime job as a hospital consultant in histopathology – the branch of medicine concerned with the changes in tissues caused by disease - along with her passion for fabric art, came to fruition six years ago with the creation of a series of fabric collages entitled ‘Beauty under the microscope’.

These collages depicted microscopic images of human tissues as landscapes and work of art. In April 2009, one of her collages made the cover of The Bulletin of The Royal College of Pathologists.

“I was thrilled to be asked to produce some pictures for The Royal Brompton Hospital in London, and three of my collages on cardiac pathology now have pride of place on the walls of the hospital. Four pictures from the series ‘Beauty under the microscope’ hang in the main corridor of Royal Blackburn Hospital. I am honoured that another medical journal is using one of my collages (‘Tree of life’) on its cover.”

Her work is eco-friendly being produced from scraps and fragments of fabric waste and recycled textiles. The pictures are created by heat bonding hundreds and thousands of fabric scraps on a canvas board using iron-on adhesive. They are then embellished with coloured stones, crystals and diamante to create a rich and evocative fairytale mood.

Apart from a weekend workshop in fabric collage in New York by Laura Breitman and a painting workshop in Wiltshire, she has no formal training in art. She is a member of the Medical Art Society and Bolton Art Circle.

Aruna held successful solo exhibitions in Samlesbury Hall in 2012 and at The Nehru Centre in Mayfair in London in September, 2013. The exhibitions raised a substantial amount of money for the charities she supports.

The Mayfair exhibition raised £3,000 which she donated to the University College Hospital’s premature baby unit in London. Her grandson, who was born prematurely, was born there and granny felt the desire to give something back.

She has also donated to the Nirmalya Trust in India, a scheme to help physically-challenged people become self sufficient. Her money went towards buying scooters specially designed for paraplegic people so they can work and be part of society.

The Friends of Turton Tower have invited Aruna to talk about her collages at the Chetham Arms in High street, Chapeltown BL7 OEW on October 1. Her work will be exhibited there for a month.