Extreme Heat Warning in effect from July 1, 10:00 AM EDT until July 4, 08:00 PM EDT At Providence, an Extreme Heat Warning is effective Wed, Jul 1, 10am to Sat, Jul 4, 8pm. Afternoon temperatures/heat...
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...
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“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...
There is no question that HP Lovecraft, influential writer of horror fiction and son of Providence, held views that were clearly racist, outdated outliers even by the standards of his time. My goal here is not to excuse his racism, but to place it in a context of Lovecraft as a human being with very […]
You guys are sick. When we put out a call for entries into our Lovecraft art and writing contest, we had no idea what horrors lurked in your minds. Consider us enlightened. Congratulations to our writing contest winner, Dylan Ingham, for his story titled “Starry Stan,” and to our art contest winner, “The Stars Align,” […]
The massively popular podcast Chapo Trap House often references Lovecraft in their recordings about politics. Because what better describes American politics than an ancient leviathan that lives underground, will someday wipe out all there is, and offers humanity zero hope of overcoming it? For those uninitiated, Chapo Trap House is the vanguard of the “dirtbag […]
Every other year it descends, creeping in from the shadowed corners of the unhallowed and ancient city, seeping into the minds and souls of the willing, drawing forth horrors of indescribable and inescapable grotesqueness, culminating in the great and pervasive corruption of all we know by an idea, a philosophy, more accurately — a fear […]
RI music fans soon will have the opportunity to experience one of rock’s best-kept secrets. The long-standing, battle-tested band NRBQ, once described as “the best band you’ve never heard of,” will roll through The Courthouse Center for the Arts on August 24 to deliver a night of high-energy music. “We got lucky with this group,” […]
It’s been my great pleasure and honor to write the craft beer column for Motif for the last 10 years. I’ve watched the industry blossom, grow, struggle and overcome. I’ve tasted the good, the bad, the weird and the bland. I’ve attended Beervana and the GIBF, and I’ve had the privilege to work for one […]
We need to talk about Howard Phillips Lovecraft. He was enormously sexist and xenophobic, and his bigotry isn’t the subtext — it’s right there, front and center. His letters reveal that he believed in phrenology for much of his life and feared the intermingling of cultures until his death. His story “The Horror at Red […]
Okee dokee folks…Most of you probably know that I hate summer. It’s the heat — I am not a fan and being in the sun actually drains me. So to stay cool, I wear shorts as often as possible, but I WILL NOT wear them on stage! There has been a meme floating around that […]
The Robert and Margaret MacColl Johnson Fellowship Fund is calling for applications from visual artists for one of its three $25,000 fellowships. In addition to these fellowships, three runners-up will be invited to an artist residency stay at Vermont Studio Center in Johnson, Vt. This is a fantastic opportunity for the many talented visual artists […]
Providence City Council President Sabina Matos is considered a buzzworthy figure in Providence politics. During a recent interview, President Matos and I discussed the ongoing state intervention into Providence schools. In the following excerpt, we delved into what I have been referring to as a “bilateral” approach to addressing RI schools: attacking infrastructure issues with an […]
