Dunnellon gallery sells soup bowls to fund charity event

Rainbow Springs Art in Dunnellon is preselling roughly 100 handcrafted soup bowls at its Second Anniversary Open House on Saturday, Nov. 14. The gallery will run the event from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at 20826 Walnut St. Proceeds from the bowl sales will go directly to Dunnellon Community Services.

The funds will underwrite the gallery's participation in the international Empty Bowls Project scheduled for Feb. 27, 2027. During that future event, the gallery will partner with Dunnellon Community Services to serve soup to the bowl owners. The community services organization provides hot meals to seniors and operates a local food pantry.

Bowls are available for early purchase at the Nov. 14 open house, with prices starting at $25. The gallery recently received a $2,500 grant from the Rocket Shop Farm Foundation to help cover the costs of the February event. This follows a $5,000 grant from the same foundation last year that helped pave the gallery's parking lot, including space for physically disabled patrons.

Kathy Sage, the gallery's treasurer, said the foundation learned about the Empty Bowls Project during a tour of the new pottery studio. Gallery member and potter Alicia Lowe led the tour and explained the project's goals to the foundation members. They encouraged the gallery to apply for funding to support the upcoming meal service.

The open house also marks the official opening of the gallery's new pottery studio. The space includes an electric kiln, a potter's wheel, and shelves for drying work. Lowe oversees the studio and has begun offering classes. The event will feature a New Artists' Reception from noon to 2 p.m. and an Open Mic from 2 to 4 p.m., where members of the Dunnellon Poetry Society will read their work.

Art and food vendors will occupy the lawn outside the gallery. Up to 50 artists can sell their work at the event. Pull Up Boyz of Ocala will serve American food via food truck. The gallery is a nonprofit art co-op run by about 35 area artists. It moved to its current location on Walnut Street a year ago from a spot one block away.

Lowe, a founder of the Coastal Art Gallery in Crystal River, said she started making pottery in her early 20s. She described the process as relaxing and physical. "It's very relaxing and soothing. It's kind of a Zen thing," Lowe said. "It is physical, so I get some exercise. … And it's something you can actually physically use. That's a big attraction."