At the 100 Dollar Show in December 2015, Jeff Pugh's charcoal sketches sold out in six minutes. A visitor who had driven down from Logan missed out on his work. Another buyer, from North Ogden, picked up Rett Ashby's last piece and a stained-glass nativity by Jeanne and David Gomm, according to a Daily Herald report from that night, reprinted by the artist studio GSG Art. Every piece in the building cost the same $100, and there was no bidding.
That rule is the most useful thing to understand about Springville's first week of December. Price doesn't sort anyone at the museum's 100 Dollar Show, at the city's Holiday Festival the next evening, or in the Light-Up Springville contest. Timing does. Every one of these events has a clock, and the clocks start earlier than the calendar suggests.
A Price That Stays at $100 by Design
The show began with an artist's idea, not with the museum. In a 2016 KSL.com story, artist Brittany Scott said it came out of a conversation with painter Brian Kershisnik about why people weren't buying art in downtown Provo. Kershisnik told her about a house show he and some artist friends had held, where everything sold for $100. "We talked about how cool it would be if we could do that on a bigger scale and have hoards of people waving $100 bills around, clamoring to buy original art," Scott told KSL.
Scott ran the first event with Coleman Studios and then brought it to the Springville Museum of Art. The museum's director at the time, Dr. Rita R. Wright, had long argued for "an original in every home," KSL reported. The show was at the museum by December 4, 2014, and the Daily Herald called the 2015 edition the second annual.
The rules keep the price in place:
- No auction. "It's not an auction and pieces don't go to the highest bidder," KSL wrote in 2016.
- No prints. Scott said she wanted every buyer to leave with "something unique, something handmade."
- A fixed number. KSL reported that the price stays the same every year because affordability is the point. Pieces that might normally sell for $300 or more are marked down by each artist to hit $100.
The museum describes the purpose the same way today. Both the museum and local artists "give back to the community" by offering original work at an affordable price.
When Price Can't Sort Buyers, the Line Does
Because the price never rises with demand, arrival order decides who gets first pick, and that order forms on the sidewalk outside 126 E. 400 S.
KSL's 2016 story says buyers had lined up as early as 3 p.m. in earlier years, and that no previews of the work are offered. The Daily Herald's 2015 account puts the line at about 150 people deep by the 6:30 p.m. opening. Then the doors open. "There's a countdown and then we drop the ropes, then everyone kinda scatters around the museum. It's like they're winning the lottery," Associate Director Shannon Acor told KSL.com in 2023.
Past coverage shows how big the room has been:
| Year | Artists | Attendance reported |
|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 29 Utah artists, almost 600 pieces | Around 500 |
| 2016 | 32 Utah artists, 15 works each | Not given |
| 2023 | 33 local artists | Around 300 a year |
In 2023, Acor said many artists sell most or all of their work, and the range runs from watercolors and oils to sculpture, ceramics and stained glass. When hundreds of people chase a limited number of one-off pieces at one set price, the people near the front of the line choose first.
The artist roster is a timing story too. This year's applications ran July 29 through September 2, and artists heard by September 9. The lineup was set before most of the valley had finished summer.
How December 3 Works
The 2026 show is Thursday, December 3, from 6:30 to 8 p.m. As always, it falls on the first Thursday after Thanksgiving. The museum's general admission is free.
The museum's own schedule creates a quiet stretch beforehand. It closes at 2 p.m. on November 25 and stays closed November 26 and 27 for Thanksgiving. If you're planning the evening, here's the order of things:
- Follow @springvillemuseum and #100dollarshow on Instagram, where the museum posts 2026 show updates.
- Plan to arrive well before 6:30. With no previews, the first look at any piece happens once the ropes drop.
- Bring $100 for each piece you hope to buy. For a sense of the caliber, KSL's 2016 list of that year's artists included J. Kirk Richards, Caitlin Connolly, Justin Wheatley and Jenna von Benedikt.
- Expect a second line inside. Acor described galleries full of people "standing in line waiting to buy art from the artists."
- The window closes at 8 p.m.
Friday, the Clock Moves to Main Street
The city's Holiday Festival & Santa Village opens the next evening at Civic Center Park, 50 South Main, a few blocks from the museum. The schedule on the city's festival page:
- Friday, December 4: food and vendor booths 5 to 8 p.m., Santa arrives at 5:45, tree lighting at 6, Santa visits 6:15 to 8, plus a short fireworks display
- Saturday, December 5: booths 4 to 7:30 p.m., Santa visits 4:30 to 7:30
Friday has the tree lighting and the fireworks, and Saturday starts an hour earlier. If neither night works, the city adds free Santa visits on Monday, December 7, from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m.; Friday, December 11, from 4:30 to 6:30; and Saturday, December 12, from 3 to 6.
The Earliest Deadline Comes Before Anyone Sees the Lights
Light-Up Springville runs on the tightest timeline of the season. It's the city's holiday-display contest, and nominations close November 30, days before the tree lighting at Civic Center Park. Under the 2026 contest rules, Springville residents can nominate up to five homes on one form. A staff committee picks up to ten finalists and contacts them by December 2.
The rest of the contest is simple:
- The map: finalists agree to have their address shown on a city map with a suggested driving route, shared on the city website and other channels.
- Voting: December 4 at 9 a.m. through December 17 at noon, by online form or QR code. Each voter picks one address and must give an email address.
- Prizes: utility-bill credits of $300, $200 and $100 for the top three. Winners are notified by December 18.
If a house on your street goes all out every year, the nomination needs to come in during Thanksgiving week. By the time the driving-route map is out, the finalist list is already set.
The Rest of the Museum Calendar Runs on the Same Clock
The weeks around the 100 Dollar Show are full of smaller dates, and several of them reward planning ahead. On the museum's event calendar:
- November 18, 7 to 9 p.m.: opening reception for In This Together: Art, Belonging, and the Urgency of Social Connection
- November 19, noon: a Lunch and Listen concert with the Lyman McBride Brass Band at the Springville Senior Center, 65 E. 200 S. Bring your own lunch.
- December 10, 5 to 7 p.m.: Santa's Art Shop, with cookies, milk and art projects
- December 13: the Utah Valley Bell Ringers play two concerts, at 4 and 5:30 p.m. Tickets are required.
- December 16, 7 p.m.: a holiday tour open to the public
- December 17, noon: Tubular Christmas at the Senior Center
The Bell Ringers concert is the one with a hard limit, since tickets are required. As with the 100 Dollar Show, getting in depends on acting early.
At Bybee + Co Realty, we think a home earns its value the same way a $100 original does: being prepared matters more than paying extra. If you're thinking about what your Springville home could do next spring, or how a property could fit into a longer-term plan, we're glad to walk through the numbers with you well ahead of any deadline. Contact Us.
