For the next three months, community-minded citizens will make soup bowls as part of Spartanburg, SC’s fourth annual Hub City Empty Bowls project that will raise and donate money to the Spartanburg Soup Kitchen.
At various scheduled bowl-making events, the public will be invited to make clay bowls at either the Chapman Cultural Center or the West Main Artists Co-op in Spartanburg. The bowl-making events are free and professional instruction from members of the Carolina Clay Artists group is provided. The bowls will be made in preparation of Saturday, Nov. 10, 2012, when they will be used to serve soup to the general public at the Chapman Cultural Center. The soup will be donated by various restaurants in the region, and patrons will be asked to donate $15 for a handmade pottery bowl. The bowls will be kept by the patrons as souvenir reminders of the constant need to help hungry citizens in Spartanburg. A silent auction for larger serving-type bowls is being considered. All of the money raised through this project will be donated to the Spartanburg Soup Kitchen.
In addition to soup being served, the daylong event—11am -7:30pm – will feature live music, drinks, and plenty of community fellowship.
Empty Bowls is a national grass-roots program that started in 1990 in Michigan. Throughout the county, hundreds of communities have since held their own Empty Bowls projects that simply ask people to make bowls, restaurants to donate soup, and the public to enjoy the soup and keep the bowls for a modest donation. This year’s event coordinator is Jim Cullen, a pottery instructor at the Spartanburg Art Museum Art School from Campobello, SC, who first brought the concept to Spartanburg four years ago.
The major sponsors for the Hub City Empty Bowls 2012 are the Carolina Clay Artists (providing professional instruction and assistance), Chapman Cultural Center (providing location), the Spartanburg Art Museum (providing studio space and kilns), West Main Artists Co-op (providing studio space and kilns), and Clay-King.com (providing clay).
Here is a schedule of bowl-making events for the next few weeks…
• Saturday, Aug. 18, 10am-noon and 1-3pm, Chapman Cultural Center.
• Saturday, Aug. 25, 10am-noon and 1-3pm, Chapman Cultural Center.
• Thursday, Sept. 20, 6:30-8:30pm, West Main Artists Co-op.
More bowl-making events to be announced.
To be involved in this community event, please visit online (www.HubCityEmptyBowls.com) or (www.FaceBook.com/HubCityEmptyBowls2012).
For more information, please contact Cullen by e-mail at (jcullensc@gmail.com) or call at 864/320-5358.
