Seton Hill University’s Harlan Gallery will present an exhibit showcasing the work of artist Constance Pierce, titled “Ecce Cor Meum,” September 23-October 22, 2010. A reception will be held Friday, October 22, from 7-9 p.m. The exhibit and reception are free and open to the public.

“Ecce Cor Meum,” or “Behold My Heart,” when translated from Latin, is a solo exhibition of works by Pierce on loan from the < ahref="http://www.sbu.edu/quickcenter.aspx?id=2012&utm=quickcenter" title="Regina A. Quick Center for the Arts" target="_blank"> Regina A. Quick Center for the Arts of Saint Bonaventure University in Saint Bonaventure, N.Y. Pierce’s work provides a Biblical narrative in a non-traditional mode. She is drawn toward the archetypal aspects of Judeo Christian religious experience and often works with scriptural images of lamentation, absolution and transcendence to reveal the relevance of these ancient stories to our world of dissonance and division.

Over the past three decades, Pierce has exhibited regionally, nationally and abroad. Her sketchbooks were featured in two exhibitions at the National Museum of Women in the Arts in Washington, D.C. Pierce’s monotypes and sketchbooks are in the permanent collection at this museum; the archives of the American Art of the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C.; the Georgetown University Special Collections in Washington, D.C.; the International Marian Research Institute of University of Dayton in Dayton, Ohio; the Yale Center for British Art: Prints and Drawings sketchbook archives in New Haven, Conn. and the Yale Art of the Book Collection in Sterling Library in New Haven, Conn.

An article by Pierce, “OPUS CORDIS: Reflections of a Contemporary Artist Embracing the Drama of Religious Imagery,” will be included in a new book, “Art Inspiring Transmutations of Life,” which is set for release in November 2010.

Pierce is an associate professor of drawing and painting at Saint Bonaventure University. She graduated from the Cleveland Institute of Art and received her advanced degree from the Maryland Institute College of Art Hoffberger School of Painting in Baltimore, Md. While there, she studied with renowned abstract expressionist painter Grace Hartigan.