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...
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...
This is the story of visiting Providence’s newest Rotisserie and Bistro, Thermia, and being so intrigued by its menu and feeling so welcomed by the staff, that I went twice in one week! To give...
Check out extensive listings for every show we could find this season. But some are bigger or just fundamentally represent summer in our eclectic, hyperactive, tiny-yet-overachieving state. Here’s a selection of special events to keep...
“Industry wants us to believe the sky will fall if there’s reform," said Council President Rachel Miller. "But for working families, the sky is already falling..." Council President Rachel Miller (Ward 13) “In front of you is...
The eggplant piece featured on the cover of Motif is the first completed work in Chenlu Hou’s Garden series, making it a perfect fit for this issue’s theme of Summer. A low-fire terracotta sculpture, airbrushed and...
[See prior update: motifri.com/iran-war-update-01] The Iran war cannot continue as it is for much longer, and this is a result of simple math. Time is running out for energy and food supply US Consumer Price Index for All...
Voting is now closed -- Join us to see who was selected Wednesday, May 276 – 10pmMyrtle, East Providence Join us for the 4th annual Motif Spoken Awards! We are excited to be returning to Myrtle to celebrate RI’s spoken word...
Ann Morrison and Marcus Phillips in the National Tour of KIMBERLY AKIMBO. Photo by Joan Marcus KIMBERLY AKIMBO is a musical with a lot of heart, a lot of wit, and a lot of rave reviews...
Processed with VSCO with 6 preset When Steve DelMonico (vocals/guitar) approached John Faraone (drums) with an impossibly unique band name, there was no way of knowing that 10 years later they’d be sitting at Nolan’s with...
Photo: Dave Rezendes. John Faraone: a man of many bands, many instruments, and one poetic voice. While John wouldn’t call himself a poet, I certainly believe that his lyrics are simply stanzas waiting to be printed....
Photo by James Brooks. Okee dokee folks… I have referenced the Jethro Tull song, “Too Old to Rock & Roll, Too Young to Die,” A few times in my 22 years of writing for Motif, and...
(Photo credit: Keith J.G. McCurdy, from the cover art of Vudu Sister’s Adynata; photograph of the art installation LO SGUARDO - Humanitas - Physis by sculptor Igor Mitoraj at the Neopolis Archaeological Park of Siracusa...
Mount Pleasant. Elmhurst. The Valley Arts District. These are all neighborhoods whose offerings I thought I knew well, having worked in and around Providence over the last few years. But you can certainly miss a...
Buddy Mott. Once upon a time, if you wanted a tattoo, one of the things you could do was traipse to Newport from any of the four corners of the world and get yourself a tattoo...
The actual declaration of Independence was first proclaimed to the people of Newport from this building in July 1776. (Photo by Maureen O'Gorman) It doesn't take long for a person new to Rhode Island to find...
The RI Department of Transportation (RIDOT) announced a major initiative to repair potholes caused by a harsh winter. A new Pothole Service Requests Dashboard site on the web – https://www.dot.ri.gov/travel/potholes.php – allows the public to...
In the midst of the Rhode Island Hospital (and Hasbro Children’s Hospital) strike, I received a message from a friend named Keith, a CT technologist at Rhode Island Hospital. The message read, “Hey dude, this is going to sound weird. Is there any chance you could check out/review a restaurant that is being ridiculously awesome […]
There has been a bright spot for the union nurses and technologists who were part of the strike at Rhode Island and Hasbro Children’s Hospitals. It sits right behind Women and Infants Hospital; that bright spot is Amore Espresso Gelato Bar. I received a message from unionized CT Technologist Keith, and he urged me to cover […]
Workers in Rhody who live in fear of getting sick or needing a day off just got a big dose of relief. On July 1, the Healthy and Safe Families Workplace Act went into effect. It’s known as the Paid Sick Days/Time-off law and says that employers are mandated to give their workers paid sick leave. […]
Michy Lopez is smiling, but she’s answering questions that have been asked over and over: “Horchata is a Central American drink,” she says to someone. “It’s made with cinnamon and it’s sweet.” “Chulita is an expression that means cute, or pretty,” she explains to someone else. They stand in the space typically used by Cafe […]
Trump, the Insult Dog Every day, Phillipe and Jorge awaken in hopes that America and President Pussy-Grabber will have finally returned to sanity. (Well, in the frothing Orange Orangutan’s case, he may not have been sane to begin with.) Call us cock-eyed optimists, but we always look for the positive side of things. Unfortunately, in […]
Gabrielle Halliday (Motif): What menu item would you recommend to someone who’s never been to Ellie’s? Caitlyn McGuire: One of the items that is very much quintessentially Ellie’s are our French Macarons. It’s the product that Ellie’s was founded on. Ellen [Slattery], who is the proprietor/owner of Gracie’s, kept getting guests who were telling her that […]
I’ll start with an admission: When it comes to food, I like it spicy. Since my collegiate youth spent in Western New York in the late ’80s when the rest of the country thought the wings were the part of the chicken you threw away — had I only had the foresight to imagine a day […]
Mr. Fish is the nom de plume of Dwayne Booth, an artist whose clever, biting, often funny, sometimes gut-punchingly painful work is the subject of the documentary Mr. Fish: Cartooning from the Deep End, scheduled to be screened at this year’s Rhode Island International Film Festival. I recently talked to Fish and he chatted happily about […]
I recently interviewed local film director Tommy Denucci about his most recent project, “Vault,” which stars Don Johnson, Theo Rossi and Samira Wiley. The film is based on the 1975 Bonded Vault robbery, which took place in RI and was, at the time, the biggest heist in American history — the thieves stole more than $30 million dollars of valuables […]
In case you come from parts foreign, ie, anywhere outside of the tri-state area, Paul and Al are a pair of raunchy radio DJs on 94WHJY. Their humor is very bodily function-centric and barely safe for radio; I had the pleasure of meeting them during my days at Bucket (shed tear here), and they were […]
