Sam Houston State University

Adam Parker Smith’s marble sculpture at the entrance to Sam Houston State University at Conroe’s Health Professions Building presents Asclepius, the ancient Greek god of medicine. The sculpture depicts Asclepius condensed into a dense cubic form, inviting the viewer to reconsider the reverence we place on classical ideals. This reinterpretation also parallels the evolution of medical knowledge over the centuries, as vast bodies of information have been condensed and adapted into modern medical practice.

Asclepius serves as a conceptual bridge between the past and present of healthcare. The god’s staff, still a universal symbol of medicine, represents healing, wisdom, and ethical practice—enduring ideals amid the rapid transformation of medical science. By compressing his figure into a geometric unit—something that could be stacked, stored, or measured—the sculpture reflects the structured, data-driven nature of contemporary medicine while maintaining a tangible link to its ancient foundations.

Nic Nicosia’s bronze sculpture, a big thank you, presents a larger-than-life human figure, taking an exaggerated bow. The posture is difficult to interpret, seeming both theatrical and performative, but also expressing humility and grace. Nicosia states that he hopes viewers make connections between the sculpture and activities in the nearby Recreational Sports building. He hopes the sculpture calls to mind the strength, beauty of motion, and performance of an athlete. 

Nic Nicosia lives and works in Dallas, Texas. He is considered a pioneer of the staged photographic movement prominent in the early 1980’s but has increasingly turned to sculpture in his artistic practice, bringing the figures of his photographs into three-dimensional space. Nicosia’s work is included in the collections of The Guggenheim Museum, The Museum of Modern Art, New York, The Whitney Museum, The Los Angeles County Museum, The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, The Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago, The Nasher Sculpture Center, The Dallas Museum of Art, The Houston Museum of Fine Arts, and The Contemporary Austin, among others.