New frontiers in giant statues

David Adickes will bring his art to Webster.

The City of Webster is planning a 20,000 square-foot space-themed attraction with a towering astronaut statue to beckon visitors along I-45.

According a proposal unveiled this week, the city’s five-acre tract of land on the northwest side of I-45 and NASA Parkway will be home to the Apollo and Beyond Center, which will educate visitors on the Apollo space program and the area’s rich NASA history.

Officials have enlisted the talent of famed Houston sculptor and painter David Adickes to create an 80-foot statue of a spacesuited Apollo astronaut planting an American flag at the front of the attraction.

There is a proposal for a 50-foot pedestal under the astronaut, which would house a small museum and make the astronaut a total of 130 feet tall. part of the proposal is an elevator to the top of the statue allowing for a 360-degree view of the area.

If the statue of the astronaut goes to plan, it would be taller than the Sam Houston statue that Adickes created for Huntsville. Sam is 67 feet tall with a 10-foot pedestal below him. Adickes’ Angleton-area statue of one of Texas’ other founding fathers, Stephen F. Austin, is 60 feet tall and has a 12-foot pedestal.

Adickes has told the Apollo Center that the astronaut statue will take a little over a year for him to create. The blueprint for the A7L spacesuit that will be depicted in the statue is coming from NASA.

As an unabashed fan of Adickes’ sculptures, I wholeheartedly approve of this. More giant statues, I say. I’ll need to plan a trip to Webster to see the finished work.

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