The El Camino Fine Arts Division has been hosting an exhibition at the Art Gallery beginning on Monday, Aug. 27, which is titled “In the Beginning: Origins of life on Earth from mythic to scientific”.

This exhibition showcases the works of fifteen artists which deal with the origins of life on earth. From Adam and Eve to the Big Bang Theory, there can be very diverse ways to approach this eternally mystifying question, whether based on personal belief and culture, religious tradition, historical myths, or science.

On Thursday, Sept. 6, most of these artists came to a reception which took place at the ECC Art Gallery. The public was welcome to view their artwork and to talk to the artists.

For example, Frank J. Williams showed abstract enamel paintings relating to the ascent of man but also to an individual’s journey, as he spoke about his personal history of recovering from a stroke.

Phoebe Barnum presented “Cracked Earth,” and a series of whimsical masks (look for the resistors) and objects (look for the spaceships) inspired by Inuit culture.

James Murray brought hyper-realistic paintings of geological formations ranging from Zion to the Canyon, and other works inspired by Native American petroglyphs.

The MammaDotta team, consisting of ECC digital arts professor Joyce Dallal and her daughter Naima White, installed a womb-like yurt complete with a linea nigra and birth stretch marks outside. An environmental video plays inside, evoking pre-natal sensations.

As can be seen, this exhibition is quite thought-provoking. It is free for ECC students and will remain until Thursday, Sept. 20 at the Art Gallery.

Update: Sept. 24, 5:44 p.m. Word in headline was corrected for clarity.

Update: Sept. 19, 4:48 p.m. Headline was corrected for clarity.