Visionary Work: Ft. Worth Weekly talks to winners of its Visionary Awards: multimedia artist Tim Harding, filmmaker David Lowery, and painter Devon Nowlin. Definitely worth a read if you’re interested in following talented locals. And if you’re interested in meeting them, you may want to swing by the awards ceremony this evening.

Music Bits: Speaking of talented locals, Sarah Jaffe’s new album The Body Wins is coming in late April. And a promo video for same is here now.

All That Jazz: A new web site, Cadillac Lounge, backs up a new jazz radio program launching Sunday morning, 8-11, on KVIL 103.7 FM. Host Cameron Smith sends word that the playlist for the show includes, among many others, Miles Davis, Pat Metheny,  local artist Arlington Jones, John Coltrane & Duke Ellington, Take 6 and Herbie Hancock.  Both Cameron and Arlington are among the many organizers of D’Jam, which will begin celebrating jazz appreciation month in April with a slew of concerts, gallery exhibits and discussions. Schedule here.

This Just In: Visual artist Jon Flaming, who just happens to have designed the graphic for Art&Seek’s coveted Tshirts, is working on a new project while filmmaker Chris Mano works on a project about it….Chef Dean Fearing will be honored next week as a “Pioneer of American Cuisine” and then fly to Tokyo to recreate Fearings as a pop-up restaurant for one week. (release after the jump) …Ping Pong is finally coming to the Arts District. Seriously, the cast of In the Heights will inaugurate  new outdoor ping-pong tables near the food trucks near the Winspear at noon today and lunchgoers are encouraged to stop by. Hope it stops raining by then. The tables become part of Sammons Park. (That release is after the jump too.)…

Ping Pong! March 21, 2012

PING PONG TABLES AT THE AT&T PERFORMING ARTS CENTER
Cast of In The Heights Helps Launch Free Outdoor Table Tennis In Sammons Park

(DALLAS)  The paddles are out the AT&T Performing Arts Center!
On Thursday, March 22nd at noon, cast members of the Tony Award winning Broadway musical In The Heights will help inaugurate a pair of outdoor ping pong tables at the Center. They’ll compete in friendly table-tennis matches with each other and office workers enjoying lunch at nearby food trucks.

The two outdoor ping pong tables will be located near the sidewalk on Flora Street in front of the Margot and Bill Winspear Opera House. They will be situated near the food trucks so lunching officer workers can join the fun. After Thursday’s exhibition, they will become a permanent part of the fair-weather recreation mix in the Elaine D. and Charles A. Sammons Park.

WHEN:    Thursday, March 22nd, 2012
TIME:         12:00PM-1:00PM
WHAT:     Ping pong matches at Sammons Park
WHO:     Cast members from In The Heights & food truck lunch crowd
WHERE:     2403 Flora Street, Dallas, Texas
In front of the Winspear Opera House near the street and across from the food trucks.

The ping pong tables will be available at the park when the weather is good, and can be used for free. Players can check out paddles and balls with an ID at the front desk inside the Winspear Opera House. Simply return when through and reclaim the ID.

Later this spring, the ping pong tables will be moved under the shade canopy to a location near the donor recognition pool in Sammons Park for students and others to enjoy. The park also offers café table seating and free wi-fi. Free Patio Sessions concerts on Thursday afternoon will resume on

The tables are part of Local Motion, the Center’s free outdoor activity program now sponsored by Aetna. Free Saturday morning yoga and Zumba classes will resume in Sammons Park on March 31st. The series, which attracted hundreds of fans last fall, will begin with Zumba and alternate every Saturday until June 9.

Aetna, with Baylor Hospital, will offer FREE health screenings on March 31 and June 9 after the Zumba classes held those mornings.

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DEAN FEARING TO RECEIVE NATIONAL AWARD FROM THE CULINARY INSTITUTE OF AMERICA

Fearing to be recognized alongside Alice Waters, Wolfgang Puck, Paul Prudhomme and Larry Forgione.

Awards dinner to be followed by a special weeklong recreation of Fearing’s Restaurant

inside another restaurant, the Towers Grill at The Ritz-Carlton, Tokyo

DALLAS, TX. March 20, 2012 – Chef Dean Fearing will be honored by The Culinary Institute of America this spring, as the organization presents its 2012 Leadership Awards Gala on March 29 in New York. Fearing will be honored as a “Pioneer of American Cuisine” and will be recognized alongside four of his culinary peers: Larry Forgione, Wolfgang Puck, Paul Prudhomme and Alice Waters.

The New York gala is an annual scholarship fundraiser for The Culinary Institute of America (CIA), which for more than six decades has been setting the standard for excellence in professional culinary education. Its annual Leadership Awards celebrate the success and achievement of the food service industry’s best, brightest and most innovative.

“I am thrilled and so grateful to be selected for this amazing award and, especially, to be included alongside names like Alice Waters, Wolfgang Puck, Paul Prudhomme and Larry Forgione,” said Dean Fearing, a CIA alumnus. “I benefited tremendously from the education I received at CIA, and I hope that many aspiring young chefs will benefit from the scholarship funds to be raised on this upcoming evening. There’s no better way to learn the art of food than at this remarkable institution.”

Immediately following the New York gala, Fearing will head to Tokyo, where for one week he will temporarily recreate Fearing’s Restaurant inside another restaurant, the Towers Grill at The Ritz-Carlton, Tokyo. As part of its upcoming fifth anniversary celebration, The Ritz-Carlton, Tokyo will feature Fearing as its guest chef, and highlights from Fearing’s Restaurant and its menus will be presented at daily lunch and dinner there from April 2 to April 6. Dean Fearing will be a visible fixture in the Towers Grill kitchen throughout that week and will interact with guests who are present for a rare and unusual Fearing’s-in-Japan experience.

Preparations for Easter and Mother’s Day dining are well underway at Fearing’s in Dallas as well, as Chef Fearing will return to his namesake restaurant in time for Easter Brunch, scheduled for Sunday, April 8, 2012, from 11:15 a.m. to 3 p.m. Reservations are available at 214-922-4848.