Beside the Wave gallery is privileged to be hosting it's second one man show for renowned land and seascape painter Andrew Giddens.

Following the overwhelming success of last year's exhibition and sell out collections throughout the year Andrew has returned with a beautiful collection of new work. For this series of paintings he has concentrated almost exclusively on studying the views from his studio at Praa Sands and the stretch of coast from there to Porthleven, furthering his enduring fascination with the nuances of the ceaselessly changing and challenging ocean, re-engaging, recapturing and celebrating a love of paint as well as subject matter.

He spends a great deal of time studying his subject before beginning work on the final painting. He usually completes the structure of the piece in one sitting, applying paint in an expressive impasto manner, conveying the energy and spontaneity of his experience and impression of a place. He then continues work on the composition in the studio. Here he considers, refines and distils his sensation of the landscape.

Andrew is particularly admired for his stunning wave studies and included in the collection is a beautiful composition "Light on the Shore". A huge, tumbling wave, half in sunlight and half in shadow, surges towards the viewer, wind whipping the spray from its peak. The turbulence of the ocean contrasts dramatically with the still, almost cloudless sky. Present, as always, is Andrew's characteristically bold handling of oil paint. Reflected light is rendered in thick palette knife strokes of pure white, but there is also evidence of his refining of the process, developing and building the painting's surface, glazing with layer upon layer of subtle colour.

The marriage between the thin layers of glaze and the thick impasto paint gives a richly finished surface with great depth. Andrew uses a deliberately restricted palette in a cool close tonal range.

"Cloud Reflections" is a stunning painting depicting the sky just before sunrise. It is unusual for Andrew to place the emphasis of his focus on the sky rather than the water and the piece is a fine example of the development in his work. The cloud filled sky is suffused with light. Subtly rendered in softly scumbled paint it contains the most delicate greys, pinks and blues and yellows. A calm ocean retreats leaving flat wet sand to reflect the warm colours from above. Paint is finely flicked, stippled and sprayed on to the canvas in places, layering, blending and enrichening colour, bringing the painting alive.

"On the beach Hendra" is a striking study of the coastline. The receding cliffs are diffused by spray laden light. The mirror-like surface of the calm water reflects the dazzling sun and the bleached sky is softened by pale cloud. The viewer's eye travels from the shadowed left to the light saturated right, from the shore with its littered rocks and jutting cliffs to the lapping waves and open ocean beyond.

Andrew's connection with the landscape is of the utmost importance to him both as a man and as an artist. His desire to interpret his surroundings and develop his talent as painter drives him to create works that embody his love for his environment and the sheer joy of painting.

To receive a catalogue of paintings or more information about the exhibition please contact Beside the Wave gallery@beside-the-wave.co.uk or (01326) 211132. Catalogue paintings will be available to view on the gallery website www.beside-the-wave.co.uk a week prior to the exhibition, with the full collection of work available to view on the gallery website from 7th October.