Holly Johnson Gallery will present "Snowy Forest," a solo exhibition by Dallas-based artist Douglas Leon Cartmel. The exhibition features a selection of new paintings including winter scenes and abstractions.

Cartmel’s new paintings explore the wonder as well as the naturally occurring abstractions held within these snowy forest landscapes. The impressionistic paintings emphasize the textures and shapes of the random snow-covered trees and human-like limbs. The surfaces of the works have been further manipulated, pushing the imagery towards abstraction and referencing the movement and the motion of a constantly changing environment. The paintings are more than just a static picture or photograph, but a gesture, turning these isolated places into archetypes of adventure and the discovery of the other worldly.

The "Snowy Forest" body of work is rounded out with the addition of several abstract paintings that reference possible viewpoints into this naturalistic world, a window or small structure, further exploring our relationship with this rough setting through the architectural notion of the inside versus outside and our desire for shelter and protection in the midst of these beautiful yet often times extreme types of environments.

Following the opening reception, the exhibit will be on view through February 10.