Dennis Hopper said it best in Blue Velvet: “Heineken? Fuck that shit! Pabst Blue Ribbon!” Yes, PBR—that dirt-cheap potable that is the favorite cocktail of trust-fund hipsters, bike punks and struggling editorial assistants alike—does more for its drinkers than leave them with the sort of debilitating hangover that only a 50-cent beer can induce. It also inspires art, which will be on display Monday night at the Knitting Factory as part of the 2007-2008 PBR Art Tour. Art Fag City reports that attending this exhibit equals free beer (not to mention the chance to witness a DJ set by Sonic Youth’s Lee Ranaldo’s son (!) and the Czar’s DJ friend Rezound)?
According to PBR’s Web site, the folks at the more-than-a-century-old brewing company commissioned a “Can on Canvas” art contest last year (what you see in the current show are the winning entries). The results were so overwhelming they decided to have another one, for which they are now accepting entries in painting, photography or sculpture, through April 1. The grand prize? $1,893 (1893 was the year Pabst won that blue ribbon) and a year’s supply—burp—of beer.
