In February 2020, the Providence Children’s Film Festival shorts program was held in the basement of The Athanaeum. Kids crawled over each other like puppies and draped over adults — some theirs, some not — to better see the screen. It was a cozy and enthralling afternoon away from the frigid outdoor temperatures, inspiring to […]
Zounds! Horace Popinjay here with the first edition of The Cabinet, a dispatch which shall be put forth each sennight hence! You may guess from my demeanor that I’m writing from the past. No! This dispatch comes from the future — the year 2121, in fact, when Providence is an Underwater City, and we all […]
Frog & Toad, the gift shop stuffed with perfect little somethings, has become a beacon of hope during the pandemic — a place always willing to collaborate, fundraise and bring smiles to the homebound with their madcap personal deliveries. So it made sense when a Providence-based parent/teacher organization president called them to discuss a mask […]
A handful of acupuncture needles rattled in Marco Leclerc’s palm, sending my anxiety skyrocketing. I practiced some deep breathing and tried to focus on his calming voice. Leclerc is the proprietor of Wandering Goose Acupuncture in Pawtucket. He practices a fusion of classical and traditional Chinese medicine, which can include acupuncture, bodywork and herbal medicine, […]
Funda is a Zulu word that means “to learn.” And every January, the Rhode Island Black Storytellers bring a whole lot of learning and fun to their community through Funda Fest. This year, the festival has gone virtual, but the entertainment is as real as ever. Black storytellers from Rhode Island and across the globe […]
Alex Potter almost dropped out of nursing school. “It was Iraq and Afghanistan prime time,” she said about her time in school. “I was following these photographers who were in those areas, and I thought their work was amazing. I loved travel and learning new languages, and really wanted to do that.” But in 2011, […]
A new mural appeared this fall at 319 Broadway in PVD, on the building that houses the 1199SEIU Healthcare Workers Union. The artist behind the mural is Joyce Kutty, an artist at Smokestack Studios in Fall River, with assistance from Wes Sanders, and it’s the first mural she’s done at this scale. Kutty connected with […]
This issue’s cover artist, Jon-Michael Baribault, is trained as an architectural engineer. “It’s given me a way to think about my process from a technical aspect,” he says. “My education was learning how to plan and execute complicated tasks, and that’s really helped my art process. I approach a design or new piece in a way […]
Aisha Jandosova hopes for years full of life rather than a life full of years, but recognizes that a lot of elderly people don’t get that experience. “When you become a certain age, you’re out of sight out of mind. Especially when you move to assisted living. Suddenly, you’re on the margins of society,” she said. […]
Athena Kobin is a licensed mental health counselor and art therapist who uses art in her practice to help older teens and adults express themselves in a different way than what they may be accustomed to. Kobin and I had a recent discussion about what art therapy is, who benefits from it, and how to […]