##Michael J Strang-The Roundhouse and Capstan Gallery, Sennen Cove, Cornwall

Described by Alison Bevan of the Penlee House Gallery as a "modern day romantic", Michael Strang seeks to absorb and then reproduce the natural world with the intensity of his vision, habitually forming fixations with various locations to which he frequently returns - Long Rock, near Penzance, and Porthmear at St Ives are such examples. Michael is also a realist, with a 'classicists' belief in excellence and the value of sound technique. He paints with both speed and passion, sometimes braving the fiercest of storms, en plein air, to capture a certain light. However, these are far more than simple studies for his larger studio paintings but masterful in their own right, as his enormous output for Tate St.Ives' Porthmeor Beach : A Century of Images exhibition in 1995 attests. Michael's paintings are now in great demand with work in many public collections including the Royal Cornwall Museum, the National Museum of Wales and, most recently, a charcoal portrait drawing at the Ashmolean in Oxford. (Photo: Barry Sinton, Tate)