BOUNTIFUL ó Some art seems to spring directly from the mind rather than the heart, using intellectual concepts rather than emotion as their creative fuel. Of course, having the same source doesnít mean the art has to go in the same direction. Artists Linnie Brown and Olivia Celine Glascock, both on display now through June 16 at the Bountiful/Davis Art Center (BDAC), use their own theories and meaning to create strikingly different sets of work. In Brownís sharp-edged, complicated images, traditional abstract art is adapted through the inclusion of fragmented but realistic images such as maps, clocks, and even leaves and stems. ìThrough the process of painting, masking, and layering these images with each other, the original images become more fragmented and obscured as together they take on a new abstract identity,î said Brown in an artistís statement. ##M:MORE##

Together, the works seem like the next evolution of abstract art, rendering it more organic, subtle, and in many ways more visually interesting as well. Like the plants that appear in a handful of the paintings, itís the growth of art theory in action.

Glascockís work, on the other hand, looks to the past in order to make a comment on the future.

ìMy paintings are figurative, illustrating both Classical and Christian mythologies. My artistic goal is a modern interpretation of these age-old stories,î said Glascock in her artistís statement. ìI aim to develop an irony between them by using the same techniques and media.î

The results end up being a near satire of those classic, highly symbolic religious paintings, with the levels of commentary ranging from the subtle to sharp. There are a handful of large-sized nudes in the exhibit, the one of the three Fates in particular leaving little to the imagination, but the most striking feeling from all the pieces is that youíre looking at a visual essay on the changing nature of belief and myth throughout the centuries.

Except for one small collection of portraits, where theory steps aside and both the symbolism and gold leaf are kept to a minimum. Here, the people portrayed are simply average-looking, not ashamed of their wrinkles and weariness and with most meeting the viewers eyes almost defiantly. Here, finally, there are people to believe in.