You can’t miss the oversized copper-colored Lincoln penny sculpture outside the First Watch restaurant in Canton Township, Michigan.
The over five-foot tall sculpture installed near the entrance doors captures your attention as you walk along the sidewalk.
You’ll notice the sculptor has made a few changes to the inscription displayed on the edge of the penny, changing it from “In God We Trust” to “In God We Trust, Others Pay Cash.”
Big Money, Lincoln Penny
Created by steel sculptor James Havens from the Havens Studio and Rose Bronze Foundry in Woodville, Ohio, Big Money, Lincoln Penny is one of 11 sculptures in Canton Township’s 17th Annual Sculpture Exhibit on Ford Road.
The sculpture card didn’t provide any background about the sculpture and my searches didn’t reveal any history, but I did learn a bit about the sculptor.
Havens’ works have been part of the Midwest Sculpture Initiative for years, which works with communities to provide temporary outdoor sculpture exhibitions throughout the Midwest.
In addition, his sculptures have been permanently installed across the United States as well as in India and Nicaragua.
From what I discovered, Havens is a retired ironworker and teaches artistic welding at Owens Community College in Toledo, Ohio. He is a curator for the Sculpture in the Village park in Gibsonburg, Ohio.
