Tamarack

BECKLEY, W.Va. -- Fifty meeting sites in the South were honored in the December 2011 issue of ConventionSouth magazine for receiving a Readers' Choice Award for 2011, including Tamarack: The Best of West Virginia Conference Center.

More than 18,000 readers were to vote, and only the top 50 vote-getters out of about 6,000 meeting sites in the Southeast were recognized.

Tamarack features live performances at 2 p.m. Sundays. Tickets are free and may be reserved the week before each show by calling 88-TAMARACK ext. 161 between 10 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday and Sundays after 10 a.m. The schedule for January is:

Today: Blue Maggie, Americana, gospel and bluegrass.

Jan. 29: The Boatmen: rock, folk, Motown and bluegrass.

Three dinner theater shows are planned at Tamarack, featuring cuisine prepared by their Greenbrier-trained chefs. Tickets are $40 per person/show (plus tax). Dinner is at 6:30 p.m., followed by 8 p.m. performances in the theater.

Call 304-256-6843 ext. 168 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday to make reservations.

Shows include: Feb. 10 and 11: "Beach Blanket Bump-Off," written by Karen Vuranch and performed by In Cahoots Players; March 9 and 10: "The Passing of Pearl," written by Vain Colby and performed by 4 Pals Productions; and April 13 and 14: "Proof," written by David Auburn, performed by Treehouse Arts Ensemble.

Tamarack is open 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily, Interstate 77 exit 45, Beckley. Contact www.tamarackwv.com or 888-262-7225.

Good investment

CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Kovels, a source for antique and collectible information since 1953, reports that according to a leading art index, the art market did better than the stock market in 2011.

"The index, based mainly on paintings sold in New York and London, had a return of 11 percent for investors," Kovels.com reports.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed 2011 at 12217.56, with a dividend yield of 2.6 percent.

Rock Lake Center

SOUTH CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- An arts and crafts/vendor fair to benefit Rock Lake Community Life Center will be held from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Feb. 4. The following crafters and vendors will be at the fair on Feb. 4:

The Eco-Beader, Thirty-One Gifts, Moss Creek Candle Co., Kaidence's Klozet, Treasures of West Virginia, Left Fork Farms, Scentsy, Pampered Chef, Dove Chocolates, Mary Kay Cosmetics, Mountain Mama's Candle Co., Tupperware, Fuzzy Toes and more.

Rock Lake Community Life Center, across from Rock Lake Presbyterian Church, 905 Village Drive, South Charleston. 304-768-4141.

Civil War in Charleston

CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- As part of the Kanawha County Public Library's ongoing observation of the sesquicentennial of the Civil War, the Main Library is hosting a traveling exhibit and a complementary lecture.

"Men to Arms! The Civil War in Charleston" is a traveling exhibit featuring key Civil War events in the city, including the 1862 Battle of Charleston and the construction of Fort Scammon in 1863 by Ohio troops that included future Presidents Rutherford Hayes and James Garfield.

Students in Dr. Billy Joe Peyton's Introduction to Historic Preservation class at West Virginia State University prepared the exhibit with grant funding provided by the West Virginia Civil War Sesquicentennial Commission.

The exhibit will be on display on the library's fourth floor through March 31.

Peyton will conduct a short lecture about the Civil War in Charleston and historic Civil War resources from 12:10 to 12:50 p.m. Feb. 22 in the Ray Room on the third floor. Participants are invited to bring their lunch to this "Feed Your Head" lunchtime program.

Plein-air paintings

HUNTINGTON, W.Va. -- Works by Linda Harbison are now on display at the Renaissance Art Gallery. In discussing her works, the Flatwoods, Ky., artist said she stood at her back door and painted the scene in front of her, plein-air style.

Renaissance Art Gallery, 900 Eighth St., Suite 20, Huntington. 304-525-3235 or 304-453-3187 or galler...@yahoo.com; www.orgsites.com/wv/renaissance; http://renaissancegalleryart.blogspot.com. Gallery hours are noon to 4 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 1 to 4 p.m. Sunday. Studio hours 10 a.m. to noon Monday, 1 to 7:30 p.m. Wednesday and 10 a.m. to noon Saturday.

'Chemical Valley'

CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- The West Virginia Division of Culture and History will unveil a new exhibit, "The Chemical Valley: West Virginia's Gift to the World," today at the Culture Center. A public reception will be held at 2 p.m. and the exhibit can be seen through May 6.

The exhibit features the many contributions and developments made by the manufacturing and chemical industries of West Virginia and particularly those companies located in the Kanawha Valley. Items on display will include a 1958 model of Union Carbide's Synthetic Organic Chemical Manufacturing Unit as well as a firefighting system used in 1940 at DuPont Belle Works and an early salt pot. The main wall of the exhibit will be set up to resemble a laboratory complete with beakers and flasks.

In celebration of the International Year of Chemistry in West Virginia, visitors also will see a collection of tools, products, photographs and documents from the 20th century when the Kanawha Valley was considered the chemical center of the world.

The reception will feature several guest speakers as well as provide opportunities for former and current workers to document on videotape their reflections on what it is like to work in the chemical industry. Recording sessions will be available on a first-come, first-served basis from noon to 5 p.m.

The reception is sponsored and coordinated by the American Chemistry Council, the Chemical Alliance Zone, the West Virginia Manufacturers Association, TechConnectWV, Dow Chemical, MATRIC, West Virginia State University, Marshall University, the South Charleston Museum Foundation and other partners.

Beckley Art Group

BECKLEY, W.Va. -- The Beckley Art Group will have an opening reception 6 p.m. Feb. 3 for "The Sans Box: An Exhibition of Art" curated by Christine Humphrey and Robby Moore and featuring works by Dick Allowatt, Jamey Biggs, Elaine Bliss, Jodi Lamb, Jamie Miller and Moore.

The show runs through March 11 at the Cynthia Bickey Gallery.

Beckley Art Group, Cynthia Bickey Art Gallery, 600 Johnstown Road, Beckley. Contact Karen Lilly, director, 304-253-9226 or beckleyartgr...@gmail.com.

To have your announcement included in Arts Notes, email sara.bu...@wvgazette.com or send it to Arts Notes, The Charleston Gazette, 1001 Virginia St. E., Charleston, WV 25301. Artwork can be submitted electronically or by mail. Deadline for inclusion in the Sunday Gazette-Mail is the Tuesday before Sunday publication.