Amid Red October, Philly Gallery Hosting Painted Baseball Bat Exhibit

MANAYUNK, PHILADELPHIA — Red October is in full swing.

As of this publication, the Phillies are 2-0 against the Arizona Diamondbacks in the National League Championship Series and just came off an incredible 10-0 victory in game two.

With Phillies fandom at a fever pitch, The Look Listen gallery in Manayunk is exhibiting Phillies-themed baseball bats by a local artist.

The Main Street gallery now through Oct. 29 is exhibiting art by Bruce Tatem of King of Prussia-based Victus Sports.

Tatem, AKA The Bat King, creates custom artwork on baseball bats.

More than 100 bats are on display at the exhibit, titled "Swingable Art," including bats for sale.

Additionally, the exhibit provides an inside look at the wood bat process, features a Philly sports memorabilia room, and whiskey that was aged from the maple ends of Harper's World Series bat from 2022.

Tatem joined Victus Sports, which makes its own bats in house at its KOP facility, about four years ago after working on a few projects with them.

An artist for about three decades, Tatem told Patch he takes inspiration from both his interests and athletes for the custom bats.

His work has been seen on bats wielded by Phillies stars Bryce Harper and Bryson Stott at the MLB Little League Classic, with Harper rocking a Phanatic inspired bat and Stott a bat painted to resemble a pencil, a design that was thought up by Tatem's 13-year-old son.

He's also made a few other bats for Harper, including a Rocky Balboa bat due to the superstar's love for the iconic Philadelphia character.

While some of his bats end up in non-Phillies players hands, he said he and the Victus team are huge Phillies fans and are hoping to have the exhibit extended as the Phillies vie for another World Series bid.

And the exhibit features more than just sports-inspired bats.

Those who visit the gallery, which is free and open to the public during regular hours, will find pop culture-themed bats featuring characters from "South Park," SpongeBob SquarePants," and more.

Tatem said designing art for baseball bats can be tricky, as they're tapered cylinders rather than a flat surface where art traditionally ends up.

He told Patch he aims to avoid any blank space on his bats, providing something interesting to look at no matter which angle you view his bats from.

The design and painting process can take anywhere from 10 minutes to six or seven hours, he said, depending on his plan.

Tatem's "Ring the Bell" bat takes about 10 minutes, while his "Red Fish" bat takes about six hours of airbrushing.

One thing he prides himself on is ensuring he is proud of his art and does not sacrifice quality for quantity.

His painted bats cost about $280 to $350, and signed bats, which are very limited, are about $1,000.

Baseball and art connoisseurs can also visit Victus Sports's KOP location to try out any of their bats, which range from metal tee ball bats to wooden professional bats.

They even have a batting cage on site.

The Look Listen is located at 4249 Main St. in Manayunk and is open from noon to 8 p.m. Thursday through Saturday and noon to 5 p.m. Sundays.

Victus Sports is located at 650 Clark Ave. D in King of Prussia.