The gallery of the De Pree Art Center at Hope College will host the exhibition of "Nocturne," a mixed media installation by artist Michel L. Conroy, beginning Friday, June 18.

There reception will be held on Friday, June 25, from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. The exhibition will run through Friday, July 30.

The public is invited to both the exhibition and the reception. Admission is free.

"Nocturne" is composed of seven large boat-like forms illuminated with blue light and adrift in a sea of 2,000 small white bowls, creating an environment of eerie tranquility in the darkened exhibition space. The installation seeks to invoke the elusive atmosphere of night, the time during which Conroy finds that her creative energies are at their most focused.

In the artist's words, "'Nocturne' attempts to capture the timelessness and otherness nighttime holds for me. My intent is to create a still, contemplative space that encourages repose and allows the viewer the opportunity to be quiet and receptive."

Michel L. Conroy is a professor of art and head of the ceramics program at Southwest Texas State University in San Marcos, and has served as a visiting professor at Hope. She has exhibited extensively throughout the United States.

She completed her BFA at Webster University in Missouri, her MFA at Louisiana State University, and has served as a potter's apprentice in Japan. She is the wife of William Mayer, who is professor of art and chair of the department at Hope.

The De Pree Art Center is located at 12th Street and Columbia Avenue. The gallery's summer hours and additional information may be obtained by calling (616) 395-7500.