NEW ORLEANS, LA.- Author and television commentator Julia Reed, actor Bryan Batt (Mad Men), Chef Sue Zemanick (Gautreau’s), and artist Tim Trapolin are among the luminaries scheduled to participate in Art In Bloom 2009, the annual springtime celebration of floral arrangements, educational programs and social events set for March 11-15 at the New Orleans Museum of Art .

The Twenty-first Art In Bloom is a joint project of the Museum and the Garden Study Club of New Orleans. The five-day events showcases over 100 exhibitors of creative floral designs, sculptures and scenes, and benefits educational projects and exhibitions at NOMA and projects of The Garden Study Club. Beneficiaries include the Sydney and Walda Besthoff Sculpture Garden, the New Orleans Botanical Gardens at City Park, the Restoration of the Gardens of Project Lazarus, and Longue Vue House and Gardens.

The annual Art In Bloom Patron Party, one of the spring’s premier social events in New Orleans, and the subsequent Preview Party, will be held Wednesday, March 11. The popular Art In Bloom lecture series and the annual Art In Bloom luncheon are scheduled for the following day, Thursday, March 12.

NOMA’s Caroline Calhoun and Marilee Hovet of the Garden Study Club are cochairing Le Jardin des Arts, as this year’s festival is known. “The rich and varied culture of the arts in New Orleans is a theme that runs through every aspect of life in our city”, said Hovet. “Our goal this year is to put local artists in the limelight.”

The featured categories of Art In Bloom 2009 are: Garden Clubs, Artists, Exterior and Creative Designers, Bonsai/Ikebana, Professional Designers and Young Artists. Over 100 exhibitors will take part in this dazzling display of talent. Among the 2009 Movers and Shakers will be Zemanick and Batt. Zemanick was recently honored by Food and Wine Magazine (April 2008) as one of the “Top Ten Best New Chefs in America” and was chosen by Louisiana Cooking Magazine as one of “Five Chefs to Watch in Louisiana.”

New Orleans native Batt is an acclaimed actor of both stage and screen. Currently he can be seen on television Emmy Award-winning drama Mad Men. Batt is also co-owner of the boutique Hazelnut on Magazine Street in New Orleans.