"There are a lot of biennials and biennales all over the world, and it's a competitive market," Jacobson said. "I don't think what the world needs is more biennials."

The event, which will premiere in 2010, will be called the Biennial of the Americas, focusing on art being created in North and South America. A secondary component, an "ideas pavilion," will explore themes ranging from science to urban planning.

For those unfamiliar with the doings of the art world, a biennial is a kind of high-level art fair that takes place every two years. Some take place in museums; others are held in convention centers.

Such offerings are designed to serve two main purposes — one artistic, the other more mercenary. They act as gauges of the contemporary art scene while attracting attention and tourism dollars to the host communities.

At least 50 major biennials take place internationally, and more are being added to the list all the time, making it easy to wonder: How many biennials are too many? And with each new one, isn't the drawing power of such events becoming increasingly diluted?

Like everyone committed to the Denver art scene, I hope the Biennial of the Americas succeeds, but, like Jacobson, I wonder if another biennial is really what Denver and the world need.

This initiative has an unfortunate copycat feel about it: It's worked elsewhere, so let's try it. Is there not a more original and innovative way to achieve the same goal, something that would be unique to Denver?

Every 10 years, for example, Münster, Germany, hosts what it calls Skupturprojeckte, for which a group of artists from all over the world are asked to create public works that are exhibited across the city. Last year's installment involved 37 artists.

Another questionable aspect of Denver's biennial is the price. City leaders expect the inaugural edition to cost $5 million to $6 million, all of which is to be raised from private sources. Denver's Boettcher Foundation has already pledged $2 million.

Whispers have already been heard from other arts groups in Denver worried that the funds going to the biennial will mean less money coming to them. After all, the funding pool for the arts is finite, and it just might be even smaller if the economy heads into a recession.

Besides the millions of dollars that area arts organizations must raise each year just to survive, the Colorado Symphony is seeking support for a $90 million
The Whitney Biennial at the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York City is the most prestigious such event in the country. This year's edition, which includes Frances Stark's "Substraction" (2007), runs through June 1. (Robert Wedemeyer )
overhaul of Boett cher Concert Hall and the Clyfford Still Museum needs $33 million for a new building.

Setting such concerns aside, it is clear that a key to making the biennial a success is finding a high-profile curator whose very participation will attract attention and who has the connections to entice high-level artists to take part in this unproven venture.

Denver's Office of Cultural Affairs is partnering with the Western States Art Federation to assemble a selection committee for the post. Needed are knowledgeable participants with a bold vision for what this biennial could be.

At the same time, it seems essential that the biennial be tied closely to the Denver Art Museum, which has one of the world's top collections of art of the Americas. Outside Latin America, its holding of Spanish-colonial art is rivaled only by the Museum of the Americas in Madrid, Spain.

Perhaps the museum could organizing a kind of historical look at the art of the Americas, which would provide a useful backdrop for the biennial and add a further reason for visitors to make the trip to Denver in 2010.

It is easy to wonder if a biennial really is the best thing for Denver. That said, if the city is going to move ahead with its plans to host one, it must assure that the presentation is as daring and sophisticated as possible.