Many thanks Wolfgang and Pablo.

And, Hans, I have already included this example for the Cookbook (with 
the three differing solution), as you will see from the path name of the 
attached PDF :).

Wolfgang, I just used your first solution, and it worked great.  I don't 
know whether the mailing-list daemon will let through a PDF, but I am 
enclosing the current (almost final) version of the table place card 
(with my daughter's name).

The figure to the left is an Apollonius Gasket of tangential circles 
made with MetaPost signifying all the family connections that each 
partner brings in creating a new union.  The code is from Denis Roegel, 
who quickly responded when I was unable to piece together a working 
example from his 2005 TUGboat article:

https://www.tug.org/TUGboat/tb26-1/tb82roegel.pdf

I've resorted to layers with explicit positioning for now, as well as 
having to compile the MetaPost explicitly and then hand edit out all 
references to cmmr in the resulting PS, but at least I have a working 
template.

If there are other suggestions to better optimize, I'm all ears.  In 
particular I would like to place each name vertically centred in right 
one-third of the card, as well as using \startuseMPgraphic for direct 
compilation from ConTeXt.

Many thanks for all the help.

>>> SNIPPET <<<

\startbuffer[tblcard]
    \strut
    \definelayer[tblplacecard]
    \setlayer[tblplacecard][x=-1em,y=1em]{%
        \externalfigure[figures/apollonius/apollonius.103][width=2.0in]}
    \switchtobodyfont[nameface]
    \setlayer[tblplacecard][x=10em,y=3.0em]%
        {\tfg\it\color[orangered]{Vidya}}
    \flushlayer[tblplacecard]
\stopbuffer

\starttext
    \setupcolors[state=start]

    %%% 1. Show the frame and layout information.
    \showframe
    %\showsetups
    %\showlayout

    \getbuffer[tblcard]
    \page
    \getbuffer[tblcard]
\stoptext

On 22Dec19, Wolfgang Schuster wrote:
>
> \setuparranging[1*2-Conference]

-- 
Pavneet Arora           m: +1 647-406-6843
Waroc Informatik        e: pavneet_arora@waroc.com