Best New Public Art

The Wellington E. Webb building in the Denver Civic Center complex is so lavish, it's been dubbed the "Webb Mahal" and, in honor of its prow-like shape, the "good ship Welly-pop." But the building has undeniable appeal, a large part of it due to public art -- especially Larry Kirkland's untitled sculpture, which has its own nickname: "Big Giant Head." The marble sculpture in the form of a two-faced Janus has generated national attention, even showing up on CNN -- not because it's good (which it is), but because its two noses created a hazard for the blind. It's not easy for a new sculpture to match the best the Civic Center already has to offer, but Kirkland's stands a head above the rest of the city's new public art.