Events from around the state:

1). The North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences in downtown Raleigh has partnered with Burt's Bees and the City of Raleigh for “Planet Earth Celebration 2008,” one of the largest and most exciting educational festivals focused on sustainability. The free event on April 19th begins at 11 a.m. and runs through 7 p.m. both inside the Museum and outdoors along our plaza and the State Capitol grounds.

2). Asheville Art Museum: During a guided tour on Friday, April 25 at 12:00 p.m., Asheville Art Museum Adult Programs Manager Nancy Sokolove will lead a discussion designed to help visitors understand the artists’ philosophies and motives on view in the exhibition “Time is of the Essence: Contemporary Landscape Art.”

3). SciWorks: Join Academy Award-nominated and Emmy-winning documentary film maker Larry Lansburgh for this compelling presentation in SciWorks Auditorium on April 28th at 7:00 pm. This is a FREE presentation but reservations are required – 714-7110 or dgentry@sciworks.org. Using sequences from his documentary film "Dream People of the Amazon," Larry's presentation focuses on the Achuar, indigenous people who live in a part of the Amazon rain forest that has hardly changed in a thousand years.

4). The Hickory Museum of Art is pleased to announce a presentation by Ann Oppenhimer of the Folk Art Society of America, publisher of the “Folk Art Messenger.” Oppenhimer will be at the Hickory Museum of Art on Saturday, May 3rd to give a talk about Howard Finster, a renowned folk artist who passed away in 2001. The speaker, who knew Finster personally, will talk about the art and life of this passionate creator. The presentation is free and open to the public. Advance registration is appreciated but not required. For those who do register in advance an optional box lunch is available for $8.00.

5). Western Carolina University Fine Art Museum: David M. Sokol, art history professor emeritus and director of museum studies at the University of Illinois at Chicago, will present a lecture titled “Otto Neumann and the Modern German Tradition of Art and Literature” at 6 p.m. Wednesday, April 23, in Room 130 of the Fine and Performing Arts Center on the campus of Western Carolina University. Sokol’s lecture will trace Neumann’s artistic development and concentration on the human figure. The lecture is free and open to the public.

6). The Greensboro Children’s Museum is celebrating Earth Day 2008 in a number of fun ways for children and families. We have made the theme of our new Community Center exhibit “It’s Easy Being Green!” for the whole month of April, which promotes Earth friendly changes families can do in their lives to help go green and be more environmentally responsible. Specifically for Earth Day, we have planned a planet-pleasing day of fun that includes special stories, a puppet show (3:00 pm) and a creative art workshop called Trash Treasures (3:30 pm). In the workshop on April 22nd, children will use what some may consider trash to create unique and art and even their own puppets!

7). The High Point Museum you to ”Furniture, What’s Up: Monthly discussions on the furniture business in North Carolina.” The third in this series will be held Tuesday, April 22 from 2 pm to 4 pm at the String & Splinter, 305 W. High St. High Point. This month’s topic is “Meet the Boss: Contemporary Styles in Managing North Carolina’s Furniture Companies.” This event is free and open to the public. It is one of the programs that is leading up to our furniture exhibit which will open May 2009.