Six of the gallery organiser's favourite artists were invited to enter six of the best of their recent paintings for a new mixed exhibition of outstanding paintings in Tenby that opens today (Friday). Elizabeth Haines, from Pembrokeshire, is joined by Andie Clay and Diane Mathias, from Ceredigion, Sally Millican, from Carmarthen and Paul Woodford from Porthcawl, at Art Matters for a three week exhibition.

Andie Clay has been profoundly influenced by the coastal and mountain scenery of the West Wales area and her work is underpinned by levels of understanding achieved through long-term study and practice of Tai Ji Quan. Her early work concentrated largely on the 'almost frightening power of nature'.

Current work has moved towards a more rounded balanced direction with her energy directed towards producing more positive, but equally powerful images that will lift the spirit. She works quickly, preferring traditional methods of painting using mixed media and more recently a single medium such as pastel or acrylic.

Recent solo exhibitions have included the Albany Gallery in Cardiff, Washington Gallery in Penarth and Aberystwyth Arts Centre.

Elizabeth Haines has had recent exhibitions in London, Cardiff, The Royal Cambrian Academy and the National Library of Wales and her work is represented in many public collections.

Her early work in the tradition of the early 19th century watercolourists has slowly evolved over the years into a style which is 'in the precarious hinterland between topography and abstraction'. While actual landscapes are often evoked, the work is frequently described as surreal and dreamlike.

Starting with seemingly random marks, 'subject matter' evolves as memories accumulated over 40 years of drawing from life are unleashed. Certain themes that keep appearing include dwellings in landscape, birds of prey, enclosed lanes and ships at sea or nearing harbour. 'These are all things that have become familiar to me, and so have become potent vehicles for metaphor'.

This exhibition includes a number of paintings that were completed during the early days of the conflict in Iraq.

Diane Mathias is an up and coming artist based in Ceredigion, who has painted all her life but only had time to pursue her career full time when her youngest child went to school in 1999.

She has exhibited widely in West Wales, and among recent successes was a highly commended entry in the Tenby Arts Festival Open Art Competition.

Her landscape paintings are a direct response to the beauty of creation and reflect her spiritual beliefs as a Christian. This exhibition also includes a series of paintings based on photographs taken by Gwyn Morgans in the Craig y Llyn Colliery in the Neath Valley.

Sally Millican took a substantial break from painting last year in which she moved house, re-established her practice as a herbalist and built a new boat with her partner Tony.

Emerging, she has taken a new direction, inspired both by recent work at Ballet Russe rehearsals and experimentation with mixtures of media.

Larger paintings have been developed from her immediate drawn images capturing dancers' movements and both her figure and landscape paintings indicate faster working techniques and simplification of form. Using acrylic and pastel, monoprinting and collograph, she achieves rich textures within paintings full of movement and excitement.

Passionate about her work, continually testing the boundaries in which she could become comfortable, Sally Millican's contemporary images represent a significant shift from earlier work.

Paul Woodford is an artist committed to and passionate about the art of landscape. He was born in Southampton and graduated in Fine art in 1986. He has exhibited widely and is now represented in the Palace of Westminster public collection. Paul is best known for his mixed media collages, which are made from oriental papers torn and layered with various water based media.

However, some of his recent works, in an exciting new departure, are made with layers of impasted acrylic laid over with shimmering glazes. He exhibits regularly in the Attic Gallery in Swansea and the Blue Lias Gallery in Lyme Regis. Regular visitors to Art Matters will remember 'Rock Stack, Ramsey'.

The exhibition opens today (Friday) with a preview from 6.30 to 9 pm, when the artists will be able to talk to visitors about their work. The exhibition continues until Saturday, November 1.

Art Matters is situated in South Parade, Tenby and is open Monday to Saturday from 10 am to 5 pm. For further details telephone 01834 843375.