Stars With Shirley: August 2024
Look to the Stars with Motif‘s Shirley Prisco, bringing you your astrological horoscope for August 2024. Video filmed & edited by Eric Barao (@EricBarao).
MEOWS, MALTS, DOGS AND DRAFTS: Have a pint to rescue a paw
Can art by Joey Visco Dogs and drafts? Is there any better way to celebrate yappy hour? If you are an animal and craft beer lover, this is an event you do not want to miss!...
NOW IT’S OUR TURN: Local team seeks to keep up positive momentum from World Cup
Photo by Sindayiganza Photography. The FIFA World Cup tournament was full of thrills, drama, chaos, unity, and live television shots of devastated children in tears after their team lost a heartbreaking match. The final whistle brought...
Boatload of music: Titanic drama
Matthew Provençal as Thomas Andrews in ‘Titanic: The Broadway Musical’ at Bill Hanney's Theatre By The Sea July 23 – August 15, 2026. Photo by Mark Turek. The challenge to staging a production of “Titanic: The...
2026 Tattoo Awards Gallery Wall
The Tattoo Awards featured a gallery wall populated by local artists. Here is a selection of the artwork on display! By Brianne Elizabeth @foxhallowart By Victori Leo Riel Grab Your Heart & Go by Allie Boyer @peaceflowercreations MONSTROELIZASUE by...
BTS with DMK: Lily Spencer
Photo by Jess Lee Images. I met Lily Spencer in an acting class taught by Eric Lutes, whom many television fans will remember from the 1990s sitcom “Caroline in the City.” Eric, who now lives in...
2026 Tattoo Award Winners
Rachel WS. Favorite Animal/ Favorite Floral Tara D’Agostino – Iron Lion Tattoo By the numbers, Tara D’Agostino got her first tattoo at the age of 15, picked up her own tattoo machine at the age of 19, opened...
The Long Game: River Shook Arrives Home
Photo by Jillian Clark. There’s no feeling quite like finally being able to fully step into your own, to truly embrace your whole self and carry yourself through the world with that mentality. Not an identity...
Roots Report
Kai Nanfelt. Okee dokee folks… Last weekend I went on a ten-hour, each way, road trip to play a show. The drive wasn’t so bad, but the music was horrible. As I have mentioned before, I...
The Butterfly’s Shadow
Photo by Isaac Laliberte Wards 2, 9 and 12 all report the same. Mendez wins in each! It appeared that Providence was perfectly poised to usher-in its first female mayor in history. The polls were closed and...
A Flicker of Flame
“You’re late, Brother,” she said, hovering outside the weathered cottage near a pebbly beach, indistinguishable from the shadows cast by moonlight that hit the thick hydrangeas. It was late in the evening of a seawind-chilled...
NecronomiCon Comes to Providence
The NecronomiCon is a biennial celebration of the works of HP Lovecraft and beyond, and throughout the genre of “weird fiction.” Centered in downtown Providence, it boasts four days of literary panels, readings from various...
American Caesar Salad
It’s almost Cthulhu – pardon my hiccup, I meant, “election” – season again. And if the tactics of these times don’t make your head swim and your bowls ache, as if you were being eviscerated...
ON THE COVER: Bob Eggleton
When cover artist Bob Eggleton of Warwick first got interested in art and started sketching nightmarish creatures, he recalls, an aunt asked him, “What’s drawing a monster gonna get you in life?” He’s spent the last...
GREASE
Skyler Shields (Kenickie) and the cast of the Theatre By The Sea (Wakefield, RI) production of “Grease” running thru July 18, 2026. Photo by Mark Turek. “A-wop-bop-a-loo-bop! A-wop-bam-boom!” BY ALISON O’DONNELL ON JUNE 27, 2026 Grease is the...
Between Worlds with Sheila Isham: Resurrecting the American abstract expressionist at the Newport Art Museum
Isham, Sheila. Teth (#8 Creation Series). 1972. Acrylic spray on canvas. Newport Art Museum, Newport, RI. (Image courtesy of the Newport Art Museum.) Quite some time ago, I read a quip that the art of diplomacy...
Rhode's Clothes: Part 3 - A Strut Down Memory Lane
As an international student a year into Rhode Island, yet still only a breath into America, I finally found a question that I might be able to answer – this is my continued exploration of: What...
Discover Providence's Hidden Gem: Siren Spirits in Olneyville
Tucked inside the historic Harrison Steam Complex in Providence's Olneyville neighborhood, Siren Spirits is redefining what a visit to a distillery can be. Equal parts neighborhood gathering place, cocktail destination, and craft spirits experience, this...
Crank Up The Music -- It Makes Me Hoppy
Music makes beer taste better? In 2016, Vrije University in Brussels, Belgium, conducted a study that showed scientific evidence that music has an impact on our taste of beer. This study concluded that lower audible...
Roots Report
Cold Chocolate. Okee dokee folks… Well, summer is here and for me, summer is HELL! A few years back I wrote a song about my disdain of Summer for the Empire Revue’s “Cool” show. Here are...
Small Habits That Can Lead to Big Financial Rewards
America, the focus of this issue, runs on wealth. So here’s how to get yourself some. It’s the perfect opportunity to launch a new column aimed at helping non-one-percenters with financial matters. Feel free to...
Liberty Trees Map
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Corralled at the Blood Farm: The rise of the uniquely American plasma industry
“Foreigner.” I find it a harsh word that I hate seeing applied to others. Yet applied to myself, it’s the only word that half conveys how baffling I find this country at times. I’d like...
On the Cover: William Schaff
In his final year at college, cover artist William Schaff truly learned what it was like to work in a studio. “I developed a course of study in general fine arts with one of my...
Next to Normal at Trinity Rep: Intensity shines
Rachael Warren as Diana. Photo by Mark Turek. The Next to Normal audience is exposed to waves of raw emotions drowning your soul and dampening your eyes. You may wish you had premedicated with any of...
Spoken Award Winner Writeups
Blaq Sav. Photos by Lillian MK Photography. Favorite Free Verse Spoken Word 2026 Ashley Hosa Sending out a big congrats to Ashley Hosa, who came to the Spoken Awards with a multitude of wonderful supporters (shoutout to Ryan!)....
Obituary: Julian Forgue
The founder of the long-standing hipster-ish West Side restaurant Julians hadn’t been involved directly with the restaurant in quite some time. But his legacy persisted. A larger-than-life personality, you never knew at what event Julian...
Obituary: Lisa Gourley
Renowned supporter of local music and arts Lisa Gourley (Sometimes Lisa Gourleyx) passed away on June 15. Reading reactions on social media, you can’t help but notice how often the words “nice,” “kind,” and “photography”...
Summer Solstice
This beautiful Solstice moment, June 21, 2026 brings the winds of change into our lives. The pivotal points among the planetary movers and shakers of the Zodiac find Gemini, with Uranus and Ceres, reaching across...
2026 Tattoo Awards Photos
By Olivia Lunger By Lillian MK Photography ...
2026 Tattoo Awards Winners
Favorite Color Tattoo Evan Olin, Powerline Tattoo Runner-up: Luis Bold, Unicorn Ink Favorite Black & Gray Ryan Dowden, Dark Ritual Runner-up: Luis Bold, Unicorn Ink Favorite Black & Gray with Color Steven McDonough, Secret Safe Tattoo Runner-up: Rachel WS, Rachel WS Fine Art...
Stuff to Do
Summer in RI: Poetry
Summertime on the stoopat Grandma’s,with my cousins,laughing whilethe ice cream truckmusic blared.Get three cones and a chocolateéclair.Sometimes,we spent the whole daysitting on those stairs.Grandma in the living room,watching Telemundo.Bachata musicplaying outfrom the second floor.Pooling all our money togetherfor some munchies.Someone,take a walk with meto the corner store.Piling in the car,now we’re headingto the beach.Ice in […]
Growers Grow, Part 1: Observations of the business ecology of cannabis dispensaries and growers in the Ocean State
Let’s face it. – if not for the growers, there would be no weed for sale in any Ocean State dispensaries. Of course, there is the intrepid home grown culture, but really, with each home grower limited to only six plants, there would never be a sufficient supply of weed to meet the demand. This […]
Rebellious Collab
The town of Bristol has a concert series from June 21 to July 2. Most town officials decided not to allow a local beer garden at these events. As you know, Bristol is home to three breweries: Pivotal Brewing, Six Pack Brewing, and Vigilant Brewing. My guess is Bristol officials prefer locals to take a […]
Motif Dispatch: Profiles in Distribution
The people who deliver Motif are innovative artists, writers, gifted actors and musicians in their own right. Ever wonder, Who are these couriers of arts and culture? We can’t profile the full dozen drivers in this space. In addition to these profiles, we want to thank Dave Messere, James Brien, Wayne Stolcz, Lola Blu, Jon […]
From the Archives
At the Motif headquarters there is a corner full of white boxes. Their sides are emblazoned with dates, months, years, scribbled in different shades of marker. Some are crossed out and hastily re-written, some boxes lay coverless, or bound in a thick plastic tape. This hodgepodge corner is the Motif archives, and was my home […]
Two Century Strikeout: An interview with PVD’s unique base ball team
The Providence Grays Historic Base Ball Club (the two-word spelling here is intentional and historically correct), established in 1998, recreates the game as it was played in the 19th century. “Some signature styles are in 1870 or Civil War-era showcases, but we focus on more than one era,” explains Captain Brian Travers. “We’re showcasing 20-30 […]
The Cool, Cool World’s Timeless Appeal: Revisiting the infamous legacy of satirists Phillipe & Jorge
Let’s face it. It’s been a whirlwind of headlines this month. It started with the attempted assassination of Donald Trump. Then came the withdrawal of President Biden from the Democratic presidential candidacy. Now it’s the nomination of Kamala Harris as the new hope for Democrats in November. It’s been a roller coaster of emotions for […]
Shirley Prisco: Motif Astrologer
Shirley Prisco is the Sun Sign columnist for Motif Magazine. She is a professional astrologer certified by the National Council of Geo-Cosmic Research, an international organization devoted to astrology education. In addition, she is a member of The International Society for Astrological Research and the Association for Astrological Networking. We recently sat down for a […]
Roots Report
Okee dokee folks… It’s Only Life After All. I may be a little late to the game with this one, but the documentary It’s Only Life After All has just arrived on Netflix. It’s Only Life After All is a documentary about Indigo Girls. In the late ’80s, their music popped onto the radio, and […]