mule football alum
"phanatic" about his art

Condron’s statue. Artists depicted on the front are Boyz II Men (front center), Patti LaBelle (right arm), Chubby Checker (neck, only slightly visible from this angle) and The Roots (side, next to the Sigma). TSOP on the left arm stands for The Sound of Philadelphia. The Sigma represents Sigma Sound Studios. The microphone is a logo used by Condron’s brother’s band, John Condron and the Benefit. The white patch on the left side of the Phanatic’s neck is the Philadelphia Boys Choir logo. On the back, the Philadelphia International Records logo is on the neck. Artists depicted are Daryl Hall & John Oates (left arm), John Coltrane (with saxophone), the other half of The Roots, legendary producers Gamble & Huff (right arm), Bill Haley (to right of the star) and Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes (under Haley).

Brian Condron '00 found a unique way to combine two of his greatest passions: sports and art.

The former Mule football player, who started at free safety in 1998 and 1999, is one of 20 artists featured in the "Phanatic Around Town" project - a series of 20 custom-designed statues of the beloved Philadelphia Phillies' mascot, the Phanatic, displayed around the City of Brotherly Love this summer.

This is the first time a Major League Baseball™ mascot is part of a public art project.

It all started about two years ago, when Condron was surfing the Web and came across an invitation for artists to submit proposals for the project.

"I was talking about it with my brother, and he's really into music, so that was a natural theme," he said. "Also, Philly has a rich history in music."

The project was eventually pushed back an entire year, but it was a delay that nobody minded: Because of the Phillies' 2008 World Series championship, the city chose to celebrate in other ways last summer.

Finally, months after submitting his sketches, Condron was notified by e-mail that he had been selected. The artists picked up the 5-foot-tall, 100-pound fiberglass statues in the spring and had 5-6 weeks to paint them and return them to the Phillies.

The statues were unveiled at the Please Touch Museum in Philadelphia in early April at an event attended by all the artists, the Phanatic himself and the Phillie ball girls.

Condron today and in his days as a Mule.

Condron's statue is on display at City Hall, the largest municipal building in the United States. "I've gotten some pretty good feedback on it," said Condron. "It's a really cool thing to be a part of."

It is especially cool for Condron, a native Philadelphian who attended Father Judge High School before coming to Muhlenberg. Although he currently lives in Tinton Falls, N.J., where he works as a monument salesman and does art out of his private studio, his home city is always close at heart.

"That never goes away," he said.

For more information on the "Phanatic Around Town" project and to see pictures of all the statues, click here.

Brian Condron head shot courtesy of briancondronstudios.com.