A woman's body that is also a cello, with soft swirling fabric evoking the music flowing from within, or a boy flying a kite indoors with no ceiling above.

These are some of the dreamlike unexpected juxtapositions that are so captivating about Natalya Doudell's canvases. Another piece with a woman playing a cello brings you back into a more accustomed reality.

On display at the Macandmor Gallery in the Goddard's Shopping Centre in Tauranga, there are painted and drawn pieces that dare us to merge our logical minds with the illogical. This is surrealism, but with a softness and glow that seems to express the essence of a painter who has felt the intensity of life with all its range of emotions. Whether this is a conscious or unconscious expression, the voice that speaks has liberated and woven the artist's and the viewer's imagination, allowing both to free themselves from an expected notion and explore the relationship between distant realities. It's poetic and powerful.

Natalya Doudell grew up in Uzbekistan, arriving in New Zealand about 14 years ago. She has found her voice in surrealism, after travelling to London and visiting Salvador Dali's exhibition in 2004. Her paintings express her life journey geographically as well as the new experiences that have shaped her perspective.

Standing in front of her work, one is first confronted, then absorbed by the soft subtlety and deeper meaning and feeling that starts to flow between the mind of the painter and the beholder.

The exhibition runs until March 30 at the Macandmor Art Gallery, Goddard's Shopping Centre.