Studio 40 was established at Inverloch in November 2009, to become the working studio of artist Ray Dahlstrom. Ray and his family were survivors of the horrific Black Saturday bushfires which ravaged the state of Victoria in February 2009. The fire totally destroyed the family property at Steels Creek in the Yarra Valley. Included in Ray's loss were his supply of art materials and about 100 paintings, completed over 25 years of painting in the valley.

On re-establishing at Inverloch in South Gippsland, Studio 40 was set up in a restored shed on the 40 acre property. The local environments had always been a feature of Ray's work, so the rugged coast, sandy beaches and changing seasons have been major influences on his work. In recent times, Ray's work has been affected by the dramatic influences of climate change on the environment.

"My art should have something to say about the effect of climate change on the environment. It's OK to create pretty pictures, but it's more important to me now to get people thinking about the big issues which affect all of our futures." Ray Dahlstrom.

Listen to an interview with Ray on local radio station 3MFM. The interview runs for 9m 19s. NB this file is 13MB.

Read some news articles about Ray and his recent exhibitions.