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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
...
“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...
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...
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...
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!)....
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...
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”...
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...
By Olivia Lunger By Lillian MK Photography ...
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...
By Lillian MK Photography By Olivia Lunger ...
Photo by Lillian MK Photography. Favorite Free Verse Spoken Word Ashley HosaRunner-up: Jeff Daniellian Favorite Social Justice Spoken Word Erik AndradeRunner-up: Mx Asher Favorite Youth Poet Angel CruzRunner-up: (by one vote) Josselyn Wolf Favorite Poetry Event Apothica's Monthly Poetry NightRunner-up: Afroverse Favorite...
Congratulations, you survived the record-breaking Blizzard of 2026. With the anticipated arrival of clear skies and warm temps, how will you be spending your well-earned, much-needed downtime this summer? If you’re adventurous, you could explore some of...
Artwork by Bob Eggleton. Godzilla has been a cinematic icon for over 70 years. However, there are important themes around the monster that have gotten lost with international audiences. There is no gigantic monster that has had...
Tie-dye by Spun Laundry. BEACHES Atlantic Beach Park: Family beach, amusements, kiddy rides, snack bars, antique 1915 carousel, batting cages, bumper boats, go-carts, mini golf, game room, waterslides, gift shop, beachware and an ocean-view cocktail lounge. 321...
Photos by Lillian Karboski. Every time you listen to a song, there is always something more than the words or catchy melody. On Friday, May 1, right in the heart of downtown Providence, an extraordinary group...
Okee dokee folks… Rising costs of everything is what’s on my mind this month. It really should be on everyone’s mind. The main things I will talk about here are gasoline and concert tickets. One...
Photo: Christopher Mongeau. Ravi Shavi, a band that has been around since 2011 and started as a moniker for Rafay Rashid’s music project, has evolved and become more rooted in its creative approach and performance, as...
“Can I go to X?” is the question 2 Feet 2 Bucks has answered with “Yes” dozens of times, where X = place worth going out of your way to, to take a walk, short...
We sat down a few months ago with one of the organizers of RI’s Deportation Defense Line. The Defense Line’s origins are organic and multifaceted. No one person is in charge of it. No one...
Artist of the Year: Favorite Song: Favorite Music Video: NOVA ONE; "chlorine" by NOVA ONE; "chlorine" - NOVA ONE (Dir. Frankie Ferrari) nova one: “nova won!” Providence’s own nova one won (!!) four 2026 Motif Music Awards: “artist...
Photo by Matthew Murphy. The North American tour of Disney’s The Lion King last played the Providence Performing Arts Center in 2017. After nearly ten years, The Lion King is back astounding Providence for a limited...
“Judge not, that ye be not judged” (Matthew 7:1). This is the core theme behind William Shakespeare's darkest comedy, Measure for Measure, one of Shakespeare’s most exciting, underperformed and underappreciated plays, currently presented by Burbage...
Smithfield, RI: A town known for its forests, trails, ponds, and well, wealth. An unlikely location for a potential AI-Data Center, one may think. Yet, this rural community, despite data center construction being illegal under...
Looking for something to keep you up at night? Whether you’re hunting a quick campfire story or ready to spend long hours reading at the hearth, here are some scary stories to trouble your nightstand this spooky season: Novels for the nerves Rosemary’s Baby – What’s scarier than a demon baby growing inside of you? […]
The leading character of the audio series The Diaries of Netovicius the Vampire was spawned by an offhand comment while creator Hugo Pierre Martin and his partner, Sonja Kelly, were walking around downtown Woonsocket a couple years back. “My partner said she saw someone who looked like a vampire driving a lime green Cadillac,” the […]
We reach a point in the Autumn Equinox where the veil is thin and spirits take flight. As we wander this Earth, most of us rarely look for signs of history from the deceased past; time and people dissolve into space as darkness comes quicker at night. How can we convey messages from the past? […]
Fittingly, old haunts surround a couple of skeletons on the cover of Motif’s Halloween issue, as designed by digital artist Matthew Bernier of Barrington. They are the names of businesses now gone: Goldy Records, Chez Pascal, and The Watershed, to name a few. “Some of these places were my haunts when I was growing up,” […]
US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has been increasingly scary and threatening under the Trump administration. A few days ago, armed and masked agents converged on a Chicago apartment house, some even rappelling onto the roof from military helicopters. They forced men, women, and children outside, even naked, restraining them with zip-tie handcuffs. Most of […]
It was the constant tiredness I had been feeling for months, the fear I felt for anyone who looked like me, and the hunger for hope that brought me to the Subway across the street from Kennedy Plaza. It certainly wasn’t the bland, cold, sandwich-like product I gnawed through while I waited for the parade […]
The following is based on a true story. In 1994, Fidel Castro allowed thousands of Cubans to leave the island on makeshift rafts. I was living on Grand Cayman, writing for the daily newspaper. With no place to stay, the over 1,200 rafters ended up in a dusty campsite in the middle of Grand Cayman, […]
My Mexican grandfather was born in Austin, Texas, on August 19, 1929. I know this because I have his birth certificate, issued by Travis County and the Texas State Board of Health. But no, rather: I have a scan of his birth certificate, one that exists in the public records and is downloadable if you […]
“Man is born free, yet everywhere he is caged.” Barbed wire, concrete walls, and guarded toll booths — even with friendly guards — confine people to the nation-state of their birth. But why? Borders are human inventions, arbitrary lines that separate us not only politically, but also socially and culturally. I’ve always believed that to […]
What a pleasure and an honor to celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month, alongside community treasure Marta Martinez, in this issue of Motif magazine. Poetry is an integral part of any truly vibrant cultural landscape, and the writers featured here are among the best contemporary poets writing today. It is heartening and important that poems be included, […]
