There are certain things you need to enjoy soup. Of course, there’s the soup itself (a spoon is also helpful), but having something to put your soup in is kind of a must.
And if you go to SouperFest this Saturday, you can buy yourself a brand-new handmade bowl – as well as enjoy lots of flavors of soup.
The whole soup bowls for sale thing is a new addition to the SouperFest lineup and just another way to raise more money for the Concord Coalition to End Homelessness.
At the soup portion of the event, attendees are given small cups so they can enjoy lots of samples. The bowl that you can buy is something to take and use at home – or there if you buy it early enough.
There will be more than 150 bowls for sale at SouperFest, most made by students in Concord schools and quite a few donated by professional potters.
Students at Rundlett Middle School, Concord High School, Merrimack Valley High School and St. Paul’s School used class time to create bowls for sale. Those bowls will be sold for $20 each, while the professional ones will go for $40 – all and on a first-come, first-served basis. So in other words, if you see one that you like, buy it right away.
“It’s really great that we have four schools involved and professional artists,” said David Canfield, coordinator of SouperFest.
The idea for bowls was brought up by Canfield, after he saw a similar thing while visiting family in Duluth, Minn., last summer. They host a similar event where students and artists make bowls to support the local food bank. Sounded like a great idea to Canfield.
“I said ‘We’ve got to do this for SouperFest,’ ” Canfield said. “It’s a big thing with many communities around the country.”
The word didn’t get out to everyone until December, but judging by the response, you can only imagine how many bowls will be for sale next year.
“Somebody said ‘You really should contact the League,’ ” Canfield said.
So Canfield met with League of N.H. Craftsmen Executive Director Jane Oneail to see if League members would be interested. Even though it was short notice and the professionals could sell their work for a lot more, Oneail got many very nice pieces.
“First and foremost, this is such a great cause,” Oneail said. “I wanted to make sure the League was a part of it.”
Since SouperFest is held at Rundlett and students made art work last year, it wasn’t too hard to get the visual art teachers on board with this cause.
“They built it right into their curriculum,” Canfield said.
The students were shown two videos about homelessness to give it a personal meaning.
Rundlett provided more than 100 bowls from its eighth grade students, who molded them all by hand. Betsy Gammons, one three art teachers who worked on the project, let the kids show their individuality and creativity.
“We love ours. They have a lot of character,” Gammons said. “Overall, I think they were really well done.”
In no way did they have to make the same thing. That’s why you’ll see heart shaped ones, one with a basketball hoop and another that has a snake on the bottom. Which would make a nice gag to your next soup guest.
They spent about a week forming the bowl, a few more days painting the under glaze before the bowls were fired. Then the shiny glaze was applied over the course of about three days.
“It takes some time,” Gammons said.
It didn’t take much for the other schools to jump on board as well.
A lot of the bowls have been on display at the League over the last couple weeks.
“I’m so excited for the students to have their work on display,” Oneail said.
So if you go to SouperFest, which you should, buy a bowl. It will be a nice addition to your fine china and goes to a good cause.
“They’ll be available from 2 p.m. until it closes,” Canfield said.
