Penn’s most ardent basketball supporters will be cheering on their beloved Quakers in style this season.
As part of the package for student-section season ticket holders, a T-shirt designed by PANYC State — pronounced “panic” — is included.
These stylish shirts, currently available in white, read “Hurrah Pennsylvania 12-13” and feature a basketball-toting Ben Franklin.
PANYC State, the five-year-old company of Penn alumni Bryce and Vince Stewart and their younger brother Jordan, designed and created the shirts.
Bryce and Vince, who graduated from the School of Engineering and Applied Science in 2011 and Wharton in 2010, respectively, were involved in an array of activities while at Penn, including serving as line leaders for “The Line” in 2009.
It was that partnership with the Red and Blue Crew that spurred a call from Josh Craggs, director of Marketing and New Media for Penn Athletics and the Penn Relays.
Craggs was excited that “it was an American designer based right out of Brooklyn,” current Red and Blue Crew president Jonathan Cousins said. “The fact that they went to Penn was also a plus.”
According to Bryce, “The clothing company prides itself on ‘its conscious apparel and thoughtful designs that speak to historical and contemporary events and themes that have shaped the modern world.’”
Since Craggs is an avid supporter of PANYC State and is familiar with the politically and socially aware landscape at Penn, the partnership seemed perfect.
But what’s with the name?
It incorporates the birthplaces of its founders — PA for Pennsylvania, NYC for New York City — Bryce said.
At the same time, the title represents “the midst of political turmoil, war and impending economic degradation locally and around the world, and the state of hysteria present at the founding of the company,” Bryce said.
PANYC State is a smaller vehicle of the kind of politically enlightened thought that’s so common at Penn.
And thought-provoking it is.
“The majority of our design ideas are generated through things that inspire me and our design team on a daily basis and have literally come from all facets of our lives,” Bryce said. “We literally have pages and pages of design ideas on every electronic device we own waiting to be developed.”
Next time you see the Red and Blue Crew shouting for the Quakers, know that the shirts represent more than the Penn basketball team.
To its creators, the shirt and brand provide a voice to speak out against the many sociopolitical threats against them.
And members of the Red and Blue Crew like the shirts as well.
“I really love the design,” Cousins said. “To incorporate the old school with Ben Franklin and ‘Hurrah’ from The Red and The Blue with the new-school design is really cool.”
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