In a modest building tucked into a Provo business park, some of the most sought-after art in Utah County measures barely two inches by three and a half inches. For the seventh consecutive year, the JKR Gallery is hosting its annual Business Card Art Show, an exhibition that transforms the humble dimensions of a business card into a playground for nearly 80 artists, most of them from Utah, with a few joining from across the country. The show opens with a reception on Friday, September 4th, from 6 to 9 PM, and runs through Saturday, September 26th, with gallery hours Wednesday through Saturday from 4 to 8 PM. Admission is free, and every single piece — close to 800 of them — is priced at a flat $80.
The premise is deceptively simple: invite artists to create original works no larger than a standard business card, then hang them wall-to-wall in a democratic display where a seasoned professional's oil painting might hang beside a student's first experiment. The result is a dense, colorful mosaic of tiny visions — landscapes, portraits, abstracts, whimsical creatures, quiet still lifes — that rewards slow, close looking. For collectors, the appeal is equally practical: at $80, the show offers one of the most accessible entry points into owning original art, whether from an established name or an emerging talent. Pieces sell quickly; the opening reception is the first chance to purchase, and remaining works go live on the gallery's website about an hour after the reception ends.
The show has been the gallery's most popular event since its inception, and its growth tells the story of a community finding its footing. The inaugural Business Card Art Show in September 2020 featured over 400 works by more than 80 artists. The 2025 edition featured over 750 works, and this year's show promises a similar bounty.
The gallery itself is the brainchild of J. Kirk Richards, a painter and sculptor whose contemporary spiritual and religious artwork has earned him a devoted following. Born in 1976, Richards has created roughly 2,300 works of art, most of which can be found in private collections throughout the United States, and his images have been licensed for devotional and religious studies publications internationally. In 2020, he and his wife, Amy Tolk Richards, opened the JKR Gallery and its sister institution, the JKR Academy, in a small building on North Freedom Boulevard. The space houses studio rentals, a gallery hosting monthly themed exhibits by living professionals and semi-professionals, and a continuing education art academy. The gallery's monthly themed exhibits are designed to give living artists a platform to sell their work and connect with the public.
The Business Card Art Show fits perfectly into that mission. It is, in effect, an open call to the community — a low-barrier, high-participation event that lets anyone with a tiny canvas and a vision join the conversation. Over the years, the roster has included familiar names like Berkeley Kershisnik, Bill Petersen, and Angela Sandberg, alongside newcomers. The flat $80 price creates a level playing field, and the sheer volume of work means there is something for every taste. For many artists, the show is a chance to experiment with a small format, to distill an idea to its essence, or simply to get their work in front of a crowd that might not otherwise wander into a gallery.
The J. Kirk Richards Museum of Art is also part of the complex. But for now, the Business Card Art Show remains the anchor, the event that brings the community through the doors year after year. It is a testament to the idea that art doesn't need to be grand in scale to be meaningful — and that sometimes the smallest canvases hold the biggest surprises.