HOLLYWOOD

Australian artist John Davis comments that his work has been described as looking like the primitive art of everyplace from Africa to Arizona. Being from down under, however, his work is most often likened to aboriginal art. As anyone who’s seen a film by Aussie director Peter Weir can tell you, aboriginal art is rooted in a shamanistic code that demands that man respect the laws of nature and live peacably in a universe perfectly capable of existing without him--and this is more or less what Davis’ work is about.

Combining twigs, tar, paper and fabric, he fashions ambiguous objects that hum with the supernatural power of the organic universe. Each of these meticulously assembled pieces seems to have a specific and unique purpose, but exactly what that purpose is is left to the viewer’s imagination--and it’s a measure of Davis’ talent that his work kicks the imagination into gear so successfully.

Teasing the collective unconscious with allusions to a long-forgotten dream of tribal ritual, his work seems as familiar as one’s own face, yet utterly strange. Gaze at these mysterious talismans long enough and you can almost recall the smell of fire and the feel of earth against the skin. (Space Gallery, 6015 Santa Monica Blvd., to May 10.)