Excitement in Big D

Pool party! Men in black, bigwigs & sweet rides make for a wild CultureMapDallas launch preview

Photo by Kelly Knight
Men in head-to-toe black Spandex sported iPads strapped to their chests soguests could preview the site.
Photo by Kelly Knight
Photo by Kelly Knight
Kelly Knight
Photo by Kelly Knight
Guests sipped on Teresa's saketinis.
Photo by Kelly Knight
Photo by Kelly Knight
A fig and goat cheese station was set up for tasting.
Photo by Kelly Knight
Photo by Kelly Knight
Photo by Kelly Knight
Photo by Kelly Knight
Photo by Kelly Knight
Photo by Kelly Knight
Photo by Kelly Knight
Photo by Kelly Knight
Kelly Knight
Photo by Kelly Knight

Party by the pool at the Hotel ZaZa in Dallas? Yes, please — especially because on Tuesday night a large group of revelers were toasting the upcoming launch of CultureMap Dallas.

The crowd of nearly 200 included major players in the blogosphere, PR and marketing powerhouses, advertising partners, CultureMap staffers from Houston and Austin, and other CultureMap friends and contributors. On the agenda: Cocktails, small bites, beats by DJ Lucy Wrubel and buzz about the new daily news site.

Performance artists dressed in full-body black Spandex suits with iPads strapped to their chests slinked around the pool.

Each guest was greeted by a sweet ride — a sparkling white Cadillac parked in the ZaZa circle drive. Plus partygoers were snapped, paparazzi-style, upon entry and got to see their photos almost instantly via their smartphones. (Seriously, what did we do before all this technology?)

Once inside, everyone had a chance to chit-chat with each other and the CultureMap Dallas editors, including Jennifer Chininis, Claire St. Amant, Alex Bentley, Jonathan Rienstra, Teresa “Scoop” Gubbins and yours truly.

As a special treat, the Dragonfly culinary team, led by executive chef Dan Landsberg, created appetizers and cocktails according to specs submitted by each editor, the details of which were imprinted on signage at stations around the pool. Servers circulated with trays of old fashioneds, saketinis, St. Germain Champagne cocktails, Sazeracs, Rahr & Son’s Texas Red Amber Lager and Moscow Mules to accompany canapes like lamb spanakopita crostini and veggie dumplings.

Perhaps the biggest stars of the night were the performance artists dressed in full-body black Spandex suits with iPads strapped to their chests. They slinked around the pool, pausing occasionally for invitees to get a sneak peek of the CultureMap Dallas site displayed on the iPads.

Dallas heavyweights Lindsey Miller, Suzanne Droese, Kristie Ramirez, Tom Hoitsma, Catharine Flagg, Daniel Vaughn, Silver Hogue, Jef Tingley, Steven Lindsey, Candy Evans and Keith Nix made the night. We were also happy to introduce our tireless CEO Alyce Alston and chief digital officer Amy Katzenberg to the crowd, as well as CultureMap Houston sales team leaders Chad Miller and Meredith Riddle and CultureMap Austin editors Caitlin Ryan and Arden Ward.

Look for CultureMap Dallas to launch next week. More details to come.

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Painted with Purpose

21 Houston doctors trade scrubs for canvases at Arts of Healing gala

Photo by Alida Bonifaz

Chita Craft, Bethany Buchanan, and Nora Jarrard.

Turns out, creativity isn’t just for the canvas. It pulses through the hands of healers, too.

Photo by Alida Bonifaz

Chita Craft, Bethany Buchanan, and Nora Jarrard.

That was the spirit of The Arts of Healing Eighth Annual Gala, where physicians traded lab coats for aprons and oils to showcase their artistic prowess at The Post Oak Hotel on November 8.

Guests — close to 500 — were greeted by a floral fantasia courtesy of Blooming Gallery. A grand circular bar anchored the room, while a curated silent auction, wine pull, and an ultra-chic Valobra raffle for a diamond necklace tempted attendees. The centerpiece? Art by 21 physician-artists being honored that evening lining the entire ballroom.

Among the physicians celebrated for their contributions both in hospitals and on canvas were Dr. Shetal Amin, Dr. Deepak Bedi, Dr. Mark Dannenbaum, Dr. Meshann Fitzgerald, Dr. Matthew Goldman, Dr. Brandon Goodwin, Dr. Mollie Gordon, Dr. Maysoon Hamed, Dr. Emily Jamea, Dr. Henry Kuerer,Dr. JP LeFave, Dr. Dean Moore, Dr. Marlene Morales, Dr. Sehar Najamus, Dr. Eric Powitzky, Dr. Terrence Wadley, Dr. Cindy Williams, Dr. Jose Miguel Yamal, Dr. Sarrah Zadeh, and Dr. Isaac Raijman, who, alongside his wife, Lori Raijman, founded the Arts of Healing Foundation.

Co-chaired by Rachel and Warren Ellsworth IV and Natalie and Mark Bordman, the evening marked a fundraising high, collecting more than $560,000 to support The Arts of Healing and its Sunshine Kids Summer Camp collaboration. The initiative brings children facing cancer from across Texas together for creativity, connection, and joy.

A special musical cameo brought the house down when honoree Dr. Jeff Ross took the stage, trumpet in hand, for a guest appearance with Dry Water Band. The dance floor stayed thumping well into the night, a tribute to the spirit of creativity as medicine.

Summoning their inner Picassos were Sarah Collins, Michele and Youval Meicler, Kristen Collins, Betsy and Jimmy Montgomery, Courtney and Zac Harmon, Kristen Cannon, Cathleen Fishel, Stephanie Wilcox, Alexis Rosales, Faith Majors, Bethany Buchanan, Susan and Steve Beatte, Larry Doty, Vanessa and Chuck Ames, Dana Barton and Robert Clay, Rita Shuma, Jennifer Wisler, Dr. Rukmini Rednam, Dr. Victoria Chang, Dr. Danielle Antosh, Katie Tsuru, and Dr. Kathy Nguyen.

fundraisers