WHEN hanging an art exhibition, atmosphere is just as important as the masterpieces on show.

Slader's Yard in West Bay is a case in point. A Georgian warehouse, it is still equipped with its original pulleys and the first floor is a large open space with wooden beams and pillars.

Until May, the former Georgian warehouse will be the venue for a stunning exhibit of works by mainly local artists, centring around a retrospective by Bradpole artist Robin Rae.

The exhibition is being organised by Anna Powell, whose furniture making husband Petter Southall is currently making a boat in a workshop on the ground floor of Slader's Yard.

She said: "There is something very special about this place. I have never found an artist whose work did not look stunning here - although that could be because all the artists we have had here are of an extremely high standard!"

Robin Rae, who turns 80 this year, is one of West Dorset's most important artists.

Born in 1928 in London, Robin showed his first painting in the Royal Academy at the age of 16. By the age of 21 he was studying at Ealing School of Art and had had two sell-out exhibitions at the Little Gallery, Piccadilly.

He went on to teach at Edinburgh College of Art and Liverpool College of Art before moving to Dorset in 1970s. His artwork has gone through several phases, from an introspective time of miserable self-portraits to a hugely popular series of paintings of lighthouses.

When he decided he didn't like some of his earlier work, he sawed it up to make witty, surreal, glossy black sculptures, which are part of the display at Slader's Yard.

Dorset's coastline is also prominent in his works - some of them scattered with assorted pieces of crockery, such as Tea at Seatown. "I just think they look so much more interesting like that than on a table," explains Robin, who lives in Bradpole with his wife, the dress designer Kate Beaver.

"I love Dorset and I came here because I had been teaching for some time and I didn't want to go on."

Slader's Yard is also exhibiting furniture by Petter Southall, jewellery by Joycelyn Pardoe, ceramics and pottery by Peter Swanson,scarves by international designer Nawal Gebreel and artwork by Corrie van Rijn, a descendant of Rembrandt.

Robin's exhibition runs until Sunday, May 11. Slader's Yard is open Wednesday to Fridays, 10am until 3pm and Saturdays, Sundays and bank holidays from 11am until 4pm. Call 01308 459511 for details.