The second annual “Bowls with Souls” in Jasper was even more popular than the first, and the lead organizer hopes the fundraising event for the local arts community will continue that trend well into the future.

“I hope it grows and grows,” Julie McMath said on Sunday evening as a hungry crowd of nearly 100 people settled in to sample seven soups prepared by local restaurants.

For $20 apiece, visitors received not only a chance to try the soup but also to choose one of 95 bowls handmade by McMath, a trained ceramist. The bowls were theirs to take home after the event.

“I’ve been working on them for about three weeks straight,” McMath said. “All the bowls are different. They’re of all shapes and sizes and colours.”

They were also a hot commodity, almost selling out within 30 minutes of the doors being opened at the Jasper Activity Centre’s multipurpose room.

“Last year we had 64 attendees over the course of two hours,” McMath said. “We have 81, right now, in just over half an hour.”

Those numbers don’t include the visitors who came just for the soup and chose not to purchase a bowl, she added.

McMath said she got the inspiration for the event during her time as a student in Halifax.

“I went to university in Nova Scotia at the College of Art and Design and they had been running an event there for 30 years called ‘Hungry Bowls’ which was the exact same kind of event ... and in my graduating year in university I ran the event there,” she explained. “So I decided to bring it to our community because I thought it would be really fun. In Halifax we focused on donating to homeless shelters and things like that and here we focus on donating to the arts.”

This year’s event was one of the last in the series of activities taking place as part of Alberta Arts Days in Jasper. It was held in conjunction with a “Cake Off” baking competition and a community variety show featuring, among other acts, the Fiddle River Band, whose members provided some live entertainment while guests enjoyed the various soups served up by volunteers.

The soups at this year’s event included:

• a roasted portobello and basil creation prepared by Chateau Jasper;

• a tomato and leek beef brisket offering prepared by Fiddle River Seafood Company;

• a cream of mushroom with smoked duck and sherry prepared by Downstream Bar and Grill;

• a chicken curry soup from the Sawridge Inn;

• a jalapeno cheddar blend made at Evil Dave’s;

• a curried cauliflower and cilantro mixture from Chateau Jasper;

• a carrot lemongrass soup from Coco’s Cafe.

McMath said she “definitely” plans to bring the event back next year and might add an element of competition to it, having guests not just sample the various soups but also vote for their favourites.