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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
“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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
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 ...
Julie Adams Strandberg did not set out to be a dancer. She’d taken dance classes when she was younger, but it was her sister Carolyn Adams who took the first leap into dancing with the Paul Taylor Dance Company from 1965-1982. The sisters would later become life-long collaborators, but when Julie entered Cornell University in […]
During the past 18 months that I have been writing cannabis columns for this magazine, I have been fascinated by the diversity of social justice activities in the cannabis culture of the Ocean State. I now have five articles on Social justice and cannabis in RI in the Motif Archives. This article will be the […]
Welcome to Motif Magazine’s 2025 Tattoo Awards! Motif celebrates the most creative in ink art. Check out this year’s brief recap of the festivities. Special Thanks to Narragansett Brewery for hosting & Sponsoring, and to our other Sponsors: Solar Cannabis Co., Jerry’s Artarama & Artistic Tattoo Supply, Inc. for making it all possible. Videos […]
Extreme Heat Warning until June 24, 08:00 PM EDT At Providence, an Extreme Heat Warning is in effect through Tue 8pm, with temperatures/heat indices reaching 93°F/103°F (Mon) and 98°F/104°F (Tue). Temperature/heat index will decline somewhat after the warning period, remaining oppressively but not dangerously hot, 84°F/87°F (Wed), then back to the comfortable range 78°F/78°F (Thu). […]
The Providence Performing Arts Center (PPAC) is currently hosting the national tour of Back to the Future: The Musical, having opened to a packed house on June 10. That’s a testament to how beloved this movie was, and that it has stood the test of time. This extraordinary adaptation of the 1985 film brings time […]
Attleboro Community Theatre‘s production of Sly Fox, Larry Gelbart’s uproarious adaptation of Ben Jonson’s Volpone, delivers a fun and farcical comedy. Directed by Jeanne Smith, marking her 19th production with ACT, the play is set in 19th-century San Francisco during the Gold Rush. “Sly Fox is a play about greed and transformation,” says Smith. “Nine […]
Although set almost 100 years ago in Depression- and Prohibition-era Harlem, today’s political climate makes the soul-wrenching tale of oppression and hatred in “Blues for an Alabama Sky” eerily familiar.On stage at Trinity Repertory Company, the nearly three-hour piece was written by Pearl Cleage, dubbed the most important playwright alive by Trinity Artistic Director Curt […]
Think battle but in a fun way! Local bands put their best foot forward in an attempt to earn the title of Winner in Motif Magazines 3rd ever Battle of the Bands. Audience votes for their favorite band out of the competitors. Qualifying events will be at Ladder 133, Narragansett Brewery, and the new Track […]
The United States Air Force announced that the latest addition to their arsenal, the B-614 stealth bomber, nicknamed the “Ninja,” will make its first public appearance in a flyover on Saturday, Jun 14, at the Washington DC military parade that coincides with the birthday of President Donald J. Trump. “The Ninja is the next generation […]
You may know the Wilbury Theatre in Providence for its cutting edge theatrical productions, but did you know they offer thespian classes? Whether you’re acting professionally, emerging in the field or simply curious, the Wilbury Theatre Group (WTG) offers classes in everything from auditioning and on-camera acting, to scene study, playwriting, and more. Whatever your […]
