SCOOP

[June 1st, 2005] BRUSH WITH FAME: There's a Lichtenstein coming to town. Scoop has heard that one of the iconic pop artist's Brushstrokes sculptures-a gigantic 29-and-a-half-foot fabricated aluminum beauty painted green, blue, yellow and black-will be unveiled in early September to mark the entrance of the sculpture terrace of the Portland Art Museum 's yet-to-be-named new North Wing. The monumental art work, a gift of a yet-to-be-disclosed longtime Portland family, is valued in the millions-that's with an "s"-and will be the tallest Roy Lichtenstein sculpture permanently installed west of Washington, D.C.

BAR TAB: Some local bar owners are fuming over Maletis Beverage 's 150 percent hike on a keg deposit fee, from $12 on a Bud keg to $30. Maletis-exclusive distributor of Bud, Redhook, Kirin, Michelob and Widmer in the Portland area-says the increase comes because more kegs are turning up in scrap yards after thieves have resold them. "There are people taking down high-school bleachers and guard rails,'' says exec Rob Maletis . "They'd jump at the opportunity if they saw a shiny, steel keg.'' The distributor says it has heard complaints from only five bar owners. Philip Ragaway -owner of Shanghai Tunnel, Genies, Bar of the Gods and other watering holes-says the spike has prompted him to pull Maletis-distributed products. "It's Miller Time now," Ragaway says.

SAME OLE ARTBAR: A glam night spot highlighted by rotating art exhibitions-that was the high-art concept promised when restaurant/watering hole ArtBar & Bistro opened in the lobby of the Portland Center for the Performing Arts back in November 2004. But the same exhibit has been on display since opening night. That's, ahem, a six-month show for Karen Silva 's tepid abstract paintings from Lawrence Gallery-so much for mixing things up. When Scoop asked general manager Tom Swafford why the art in ArtBar seems to be the last thing on anybody's mind, he referred us to PCPA executive director Robyn Williams . Williams says she doesn't have time or qualifications to curate shows at ArtBar, so she's "in the process of talking to some gallery owners about being on a committee to help us out."

BUSHIE SCORNED UPDATE: Gary Cole, arts producer and former WW cover boy, may not have scored a high-level GOP appointment at the National Endowment for the Arts-thanks, in part, to a background check that turned up Poona the Fuckdog, his company's arty video of adult bedtime stories (see "Curtains," Oct. 20, 2004). But now he's getting some revenge. Portland State University's student-operated Ooligan Press has announced it will publish Cole's book next spring. The former Bush supporter's memoir, Artless, includes an indictment of the Bush administration's arts policies. You can catch Poona on the big screen at Cinema 21 (616 NW 21st Ave., 223-4515) at 11:30 pm Friday and Saturday, June 10-11.