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Algernon Cadwallader Announce First New Album In 14 Years

Algernon Cadwallader have announced their first album in 14 years, Trying Not to Have a Thought, which arrives September 12 via Saddle Creek. Following 2011’s Parrot Flies, it’s also the emo band’s first album with the original lineup of vocalist/bassist Peter Helmis, guitarists Joe Reinhart and Colin Mahony, and drummer Nick Tazza since their 2008 debut Some Kind of Cadwallader. The rowdy, poignant lead single ‘Hawk’ is out today alongside a video directed by Darby Irrgang and Ricky Christian. Check it out below.

In 2018, Lauren Records reissued Algernon Cadwallader’s two albums on vinyl. In 2022, the group reunited for their first live shows in a decade.

Trying Not to Have a Thought Cover Artwork:

Trying Not to Have a Thought

Trying Not to Have a Thought Tracklist:

1. Hawk
2. Shameless Faces (Even The Guy Who Made The Thing Was A Piece Of Shit)
3. What’s Mine
4. noitanitsarcorP
5. Koyaanisqatsi
6. Trying Not To Have A Thought
7. You’ve Always Been Here
8. Revelation 420
9. Million Dollars
10. Attn MOVE
11. World Of Difference

Algernon Cadwallader 2025 Tour Dates:

Nov 06 – Portland, OR – Hawthorne Theatre
Nov 07 – Vancouver, BC – Rickshaw Theatre
Nov 08 – Seattle, WA – Substation
Nov 10 – San Francisco, CA – Great American Music Hall
Nov 11 – West Hollywood, CA – The Roxy Theatre
Nov 13 – Anaheim, CA – Chain Reaction
Nov 14 – Mesa, AZ – The Rosetta Room
Nov 15 – Santa Fe, NM – Tumbleroot Distillery
Nov 16 – Denver, CO – Marquis Theater
Nov 17 – Wichita, KS – WAVE
Nov 20 – Austin, TX – 29th St Ballroom
Nov 21 – Denton, TX – Rubber Gloves
Nov 22 – Oklahoma City, OK – Resonant Head
Nov 24 – Omaha, NE – Slowdown
Nov 25 – Minneapolis, MN – 7th St Entry
Nov 26 – Chicago, IL – Thalia Hall
Nov 28 – Ferndale, MI – The Loving Touch
Nov 29 – Toronto, ON – Hard Luck
Nov 30 – Montreal, QC – Bar le “Ritz” PDB
Dec 01 – South Burlington, VT – Higher Ground
Dec 02 – Portland, ME – SPACE Gallery
Dec 04 – New York, NY – Racket
Dec 05 – Allentown, PA – Arrow at Archer Music Hall
Dec 06 – Columbus, OH – Ace of Cups
Dec 07 – Nashville, TN – DRKMTTR
Dec 08 – Atlanta, GA – Aisle 5
Dec 09 – Gainesville, FL – Heartwood Soundstage
Dec 11 – Durham, NC – Motorco Music Hall
Dec 12 – Washington, DC – The Atlantis
Dec 13 – Philadelphia, PA – Union Transfer
Dec 14 – Hamden, CT – Space Ballroom
Dec 15 – Cambridge, MA – The Sinclair

Stella Donnelly Returns With New Songs ‘Baths’ and ‘Standing Ovation’

Stella Donnelly has returned with two new songs, the Australian artist’s first solo music since 2022’s Flood. ‘Baths’, a stunning display of Donnelly’s vocals and melodic sensibility, comes paired with an accompanying video, while ‘Standing Ovation’ is similarly spare before jangly guitars kick in. They follow a period of rest and reflection, and you can hear it in their hushed beauty. Take a listen below.

“I came up with this melody while I was swimming laps at the Brunswick Baths, the pool filter was making a humming sound on one note which allowed me to sing a melody over the top,” Donnelly said of ‘Baths’ in a statement. “It then continued when I got home and had a shower with the bathroom fan on. Both activities made it difficult to write any lyrics down. I finally sat with a keyboard and held a note and it all just came together. A little timeline of my life so far.”

The double A-side release marks Donnelly’s signing to Dot Dash Recordings/Remote Control Records. “It felt like the right time for a reset, creatively, personally, and professionally,” she commented. “I could think of no better home for these songs than Dot Dash. I’m so grateful to have found a team who genuinely believe in the music and have given me the space to explore what this next chapter looks like. I felt very much at home straight away!”

How Diverse Narratives are Shaping Modern Gaming

As the gaming industry evolves, character diversity becomes a cornerstone of storytelling and player engagement. Inclusive narratives not only enrich gameplay but also resonate with audiences seeking representation. Modern games increasingly prioritize characters from varied backgrounds, setting new standards for inclusivity.

The evolving landscape of video games reveals a significant shift towards diverse character representation. In recent years, there has been a conscious effort to include various narratives that mirror the complexities of real-world societies. This push for inclusivity is reshaping how games are developed and experienced. Such inclusive efforts impact audience engagement profoundly, as players connect more deeply with characters that reflect their own identities or open them to new perspectives. As industry standards evolve, platforms offer insights into recent game releases that highlight diverse backgrounds and narratives, enriching the gaming experience.

Challenges and opportunities in creating inclusive content

Creating inclusive content presents both challenges and opportunities for developers. One major challenge lies in avoiding stereotypes while authentically representing different cultures and identities. Missteps can lead to backlash from communities seeking accurate portrayals, making sensitivity and research crucial components of the development process. However, these challenges also pave the way for innovation as developers strive to tell stories that resonate with diverse audiences.

Embracing diverse narratives opens up new avenues for creativity within game design. Developers have the opportunity to explore unique storylines and settings that might otherwise be overlooked in favor of traditional themes. This approach not only enhances the richness of gaming content but also provides players with fresh experiences that challenge their perceptions.

Games Hub serves as a valuable resource for not only helping you to find the best gaming options, but also exploring both progress and pitfalls in character representation. By highlighting successes and missteps within the industry, it encourages an ongoing dialogue about inclusivity’s role in shaping gaming’s future landscape. As more developers commit to diversity, opportunities for meaningful storytelling continue to expand, benefitting both creators and audiences alike.

The influence of diverse characters in gaming

Diverse characters have become integral to modern gaming, enhancing both storytelling and player immersion. By weaving various cultural backgrounds and experiences into game narratives, developers create richer worlds that captivate players on multiple levels. This approach not only broadens the appeal of games but also fosters empathy and understanding among players. Game studios are increasingly recognizing the value of showcasing diverse perspectives, which often results in more engaging and authentic storylines.

Games Hub provides an invaluable resource for those seeking to explore this trend further. By covering recent releases that prioritize inclusivity, it offers gamers a comprehensive view of how diversity is being embraced across different titles. These games often challenge conventional norms by presenting characters from underrepresented groups in lead roles or through nuanced storytelling techniques. The result is a more immersive experience that resonates with a wider audience.

Moreover, diverse characters contribute significantly to the cultural relevance of video games. As digital entertainment becomes a dominant form of media consumption, reflecting the world’s diversity within these virtual realms becomes paramount. Players increasingly demand representation, leading developers to innovate and push boundaries in character creation and narrative design.

Impact of inclusive representation on audience engagement

Inclusive character representation significantly influences audience reception and gameplay experiences. Games featuring diverse narratives often enjoy higher levels of player engagement due to their ability to forge emotional connections through relatable characters. When players see themselves reflected in the games they play or gain insights into unfamiliar cultures, their investment in the story deepens.

This connection enhances emotional responses during gameplay, leading to more memorable experiences that resonate long after the game is finished. Such engagement also translates into community growth as players share their experiences and foster discussions around representation’s importance in gaming culture.

Games Hub plays a crucial role in promoting games that prioritize representation and inclusivity by spotlighting titles that excel in these areas. By doing so, it helps drive demand for more inclusive content while providing a platform for developers committed to diversity initiatives.

Book Review: Robbie Arnott, ‘Dusk’

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I’m not one to camp, which made Robbie Arnott’s Dusk — in which two twins fight to capture a wild puma of the same name faster than the other big game hunters in exchange for a huge bounty — eerie on two levels; that of the hunt, and of the incessant, pounding environment threatening to devour them alike. 

The Tasmanian writer’s fourth novel is a four-character affair — the twins, Iris and Lloyd, Dusk, the puma, and nature, or in his words, “all of these places that frothed with the pace of the world, where life shook and strained, where one’s blood ran fast.” Arnott’s wide-eyed earthy fascination is present in every sentence, and even though the heavy, mouthy prose takes a while to get used to, eventually some stronger developments emerge. But this is nature writing at its finest as he describes the Australian highlands: “The small islands off the coast, where the trees were beaten flat by the screaming winds they’d rowed through to join the muttonbird season, thrusting their hands down sandy burros as likely to hold coiled snakes as thin-necked chicks. The sandstone quarries, full of miner’s lung. The vast estuaries to the east, where they had thrown weighted nets into ink-dark currents, dragging out schools of flapping bream. The lagoons and wetlands, where they’d hunted black swans with barbed spears.”

The twins are disadvantaged from the start, outmanned by six other stronger hunters who may have already captured Dusk, but they’re crafty. (And they really need the money). Cursed from birth, they’re weighed down by the genes of their parents, two criminals who schemed, plotted, killed, and sometimes even involved the twins. They “stole with stealth, deception, distraction, intimidation, violence — whatever worked,” Arnott writes. “Whatever fed and clothed and warmed them.” Before their parents passed, the kids learned how to be scrappy — and to stick together.

Deeper into the hunt, they meet others — a man whose son was chomped by Dusk, a handsome fellow that Iris uses for directions and companionship, and a kind woman who gives Iris shelter and money for cutting peat. But the twins know their own rhythms the best, and their kindness and understanding — her help with his back injury, and his keen knowledge of her personality — means they’re all they can rely on. Iris “wondered if a bit of mystery between them might have made life more surprising.”

Lack of surprise informs the novel too; this is a hero’s journey, and some riskier decisions could have made it more layered and interesting. Despite some squirmy moments, it won’t shock anyone to say that the twins survive. What they do with Dusk, though, is thrilling,  once they’ve understood profit vs. nature rammed up against each other in such a tangible way. And it’s in a particularly deadly form.

Dusk is enamored with nature, deeply interested in the dynamics between siblings, and keenly aware of karmic destiny. Arnott has a talent of making stories out of a few simple sentences, whether it’s for a human or for a puma. Looking into the eyes of both, they don’t seem too different.


Dusk is out now.

What is Rick and Morty Rated? Parental Guide & Age Rating

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Rick and Morty is a uniquely outrageous animated series. It has become somewhat of a cultural phenomenon since its debut in 2013. It is despite the divided feedback from audiences, especially in the last four seasons. Specifically, the story focuses on Scientist Ricky and his grandson Morty’s adventures across the universe. At the same time, many loved the show for featuring complex themes even if it’s a series in animated format. Likewise, many parents are eager to know about its rating.

Read more to learn about the show’s rating and content elements.

What is the Rating of the Series?

IMDb says that Rick and Morty has an official rating of TV-MA. To be specific, this rating means it’s for mature audiences. Similarly, Common Sense Media states that it is most suitable for viewers aged 16 and older. Rick and Morty frequently includes strong language, visual violence, and adult themes.  

The following content categories are rated based on IMDb‘s guide:

  • Alcohol, Drugs, & Smoking: Severe
  • Frightening & Intense Scenes: Moderate
  • Profanity: Severe
  • Sex & Nudity: Moderate
  • Violence & Gore: Severe

What Does the Rick and Morty Rating Mean?

As mentioned, Rick and Morty is a unique animated series. Most shows in this format are often appropriate for children or younger viewers. However, Rick and Morty takes a very different approach. Specifically, the TV-MA rating means that the series has content depicting dark humor, science fiction, and complex scenarios — all of which require a mature understanding.

Content Breakdown of Rick and Morty

To get a clearer picture of the show, here’s more info based on IMDb‘s review:

  • Alcohol, Drugs, & Smoking

Rick and Morty probably forgot to reduce the depiction of substance use in the series, because there is plenty of it. Particularly, characters use all kinds of drugs, even alien drugs. Some are also smoking cigarettes. Underage drinking is present, too.

  • Frightening & Intense Scenes

In one episode, there are jumping rats. This can get intense for some, as they also die in the scene. Also, the show is generally mean-spirited. So, sensitive viewers could find it uncomfortable.

  • Profanity

Throughout the series, the characters use the F word hundreds of times. Likewise, they also use strong and very offensive language. The show is basically a walking red flag in this category.

  • Sex & Nudity

The sitcom does not present on-screen sexual activities. Nothing is overly explicit and graphic. However, there are many sexual references and jokes.

  • Violence & Gore

While shown in a comedic manner, many scenes portray graphic and disturbing violence. Also, every season gets more brutal than the previous one.

The Final Verdict

Parents mustn’t confuse Rick and Morty as a child-friendly animated show. The series is clearly not for kids. And the TV-MA rating says it all. They should approach the show with caution because it contains dark material.

What is The Rookie Rated? Parental Guide & Age Rating

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Premiering in 2018, The Rookie has built a massive fanbase — both for its content offerings and the inclusion of Nathan Fillion. More specifically, the show is popular for its mix of police drama and personal storytelling. It stars Fillion, who’s starting over in life as a middle-aged man. Likewise, he decides to pursue his dream of becoming a police officer. So, he became the oldest rookie in the Los Angeles Police Department. The show appeals to a wide range of audiences due to its material, which incorporates action, suspense, and humor. However, many parents are still curious about its rating.

Continue reading to understand the official rating of the series and what kind of content to expect.

What is the Rating of the Series?

As per IMDb, The Rookie bears an official TV-14 rating. The rating system indicates that this rating stands for “Parents Strongly Cautioned.” At the same time, it’s recommended to audiences aged 13 and above by Common Sense Media. Also, the rating hints that moderate violence, strong language, and suggestive content are present in the show.

IMDb‘s guide rates the following content aspects accordingly:

  • Alcohol, Drugs, & Smoking: Moderate
  • Frightening & Intense Scenes: Moderate
  • Profanity: Mild
  • Sex & Nudity: Mild
  • Violence & Gore: Moderate

What Does The Rookie’s Rating Mean?

The TV-14 rating means it’s not suitable for viewers under the specified age. While it’s more tolerant than a TV-MA rating, parents should still be mindful. Particularly, this rating suggests that the show contains themes like crime, corruption, skepticism, and emotional trauma. At the same time, the police scenarios in every episode add up to the mature tone of the series.

Content Breakdown of The Rookie

Check out this detailed content description based on IMDb:

  • Alcohol, Drugs, & Smoking

Due to the show’s genre, there are some mentions and use of illegal drugs on screen. Social drinking is also present.

  • Frightening & Intense Scenes

As expected, there are several criminal situations. Similarly, these instances are intense as they involve shootings, abductions, police brutality, and racism.

  • Profanity

Compared to other police stories, The Rookie has infrequent use of curse words.

  • Sex & Nudity

The show has little to no scenes depicting sex and nudity. Perhaps, the most intense thing that it did was have individuals kissing. Likewise, some are being romantic with each other without being too explicit.

  • Violence & Gore

Over seven seasons, many characters got involved in shootings, stabbings, killings, beatings, fights, and torture.

The Final Verdict

The Rookie is not overly explicit in presenting its mature material. But for everyone’s peace of mind, parents should use discretion. They should also consider their teen’s level of maturity before watching the show.

Wombo Unveil New Song ‘S.T. Tilted’

Ahead of the release of their new album Danger in Fives on Friday, Wombo have dropped another hypnotic, jagged single. ‘S.T’ Tilted’ arrives with a self-produced video, which you can check out below.

“It’s the first song we wrote after the Slab EP that made it on Danger in Fives,” the band’s Sydney Chadwick explained. “We weren’t sure it was going to work, but all the contrasting parts ended up being cool. It’s rare for a Wombo song to be written on guitar first like this one, with some of the bass and drum parts jammed out in the basement afterwards. The wacky guitar part came last.”

Emily Yacina Announces New Album ‘Veilfall’, Shares New Single ‘Talk Me Down’

Emily Yacina has returned with news of her next album, Veilfall, which will arrive on September 26. Following 2019’s Remember the Silver and the 2022 compilation All the Things, the record is led by the lovely, transfixing new single ‘Talk Me Down’. Check it out and find the album cover and tracklist below.

“‘Talk Me Down’ came to be from my dear friend Trish McGowan’s beat,” the Long Beach-based, East Coast native shared in a statement. “A few years ago, she sent me a soundcloud playlist with instrumentals and beats she had made. This one immediately struck me as being very special. The lyrics and melodies on top came easily — a testament to her musicality. It’s a fun song about the fear of vulnerability, which is a major theme of the whole album.”

Yacina worked on Veilfall with producers Charlie Brand (Miniature Tigers) and Jonnie Baker (Florist). Gia Margaret, Oliver Hill (Coco), and Cameron Wisch (Porches) are among the LP’s contributors.

Revisit our 2022 interview with Emily Yacina.

Veilfall Cover Artwork:

Veilfall art by Ben Styer

Veilfall Tracklist:

1. Battle
2. WIP
3. Holy For a Moment
4. Clarity
5. Shine
6. Meteor
7. The Clearing
8. Free / Forgotten
9. The Dream
10. Rust
11. Signal
12. Talk Me Down
13. Blanket

Ting Xu: Redefining Calligraphy’s Cultural Boundaries

Imagine calligraphy breaking free from its paper confines, transforming into sculptural landscapes where brushstrokes cast shadows and ancient philosophy meets recycled materials. When a person draws on influences from more than one country, they can be categorised as ‘third culture kids’ – people who draw from multiple cultures to create a distinct one of their own. We see that in Ting Xu’s work as she draws from her Chinese heritage and mixes this with the influences of now living and working in the UK.

Smoke, Fusion Calligraphy Series, Ting Xu, 2025

Her dual identity as both calligraphy artist and curator deepens the wells she can draw upon and allows her to raise questions in her practice about how traditional Eastern practices function within Western artistic frameworks and institutional structures. How do you honour thousand-year-old traditions while speaking to contemporary British audiences? How do you maintain cultural authenticity while embracing innovation? It allows her to position calligraphy as both a historical practice, rooted in Chinese culture, and a contemporary medium reflecting the influence of British life on her art.

Installation view, curated by Ting Xu

For Xu, the central question is provocative: what happens when calligraphy refuses to stay put? She incorporates recycled materials and three-dimensional elements so that they become more tactile, play with light and shadow and question how art can become more sustainable. Her “Paper” series and “Calligraphy Meets Canvas” works demonstrate different strategies for this engagement – one emphasizing texture and environmental consciousness, the other cross-cultural influences.

Eco-Calligraphy Series, Ting Xu, 2025

Traditional calligraphy lives on paper. But why should it stay there? Xu’s works question whether it needs to be, also appearing on a bag and asking whether this functional form diminishes it or gives it new life. It retains its mark-making practice rooted in philosophical tradition, but now becomes more mobile and able to engage a different audience – people passing by or on a commute, not just gallery visitors.

Eco-Calligraphy Series, Ting Xu, 2025

Her curatorial work also orchestrates conversations between cultures. Rather than presenting Chinese and British artistic traditions as separate entities, Xu’s exhibitions allow works to speak to each other. In “When Spring Returns,” she creates opportunities for audiences to experience cultural differences and be inspired by both.

The participatory dimension of Xu’s practice extends beyond traditional exhibition formats to include workshops and demonstrations that invite active engagement with calligraphic materials and techniques. Her work with the Society of Fulham Artists and Potters (SoFAP) and her Kingston exhibition created spaces where British audiences could experience the physical aspects of brushwork and understand calligraphy as an embodied practice rather than merely a visual art form.

Magic happens when she puts brushes directly into people’s hands.There’s something powerful about learning through your hands before your head. When participants first grip the brush, feel the ink’s resistance, watch it bloom across paper, they understand calligraphy viscerally. The experience of creating opens the door to its underlying philosophy.

The reception of Xu’s work at these workshops suggests there is an appetite for more immersive approaches to cross-cultural programming, and audience feedback suggests that her emphasis on direct experience and material engagement creates memorable experiences. Her appointment as International Events Organiser at SoFAP reflects this positive feedback and the need for greater events to continue engaging wider audiences.

On first seeing Xu’s work, I admired both her technical skill and her curiosity. She is open to how calligraphy might connect with people who’ve never encountered it before. There’s a thoughtful approach in how Xu brings together ancient traditions with materials and ideas you wouldn’t expect. The result is different for everyone, and this is what makes her approach feel fresh and genuinely meaningful. She isn’t afraid to let her practice evolve, and that’s what keeps her practice exciting as we don’t know what’s coming next.

As Xu continues pushing boundaries, she’s writing, quite literally, the future of how ancient practices can thrive in contemporary contexts. Proving that tradition’s greatest strength lies not in staying the same, but in its capacity to grow.

Carving in Dualities: Di Cao’s Mythologies of Matter

Di Cao is a multidisciplinary artist based in London whose work combines metaphorical narrative with practical craft in the context of digital surrealism and contemporary design. Cao’s work orbits around eternal dualities—between nature and artifice, absence and solidity, self and cosmos. It draws heavily from philosophical research, particularly from Maurice Merleau-Ponty’s ideology and cosmology. His sculptures and digital artworks represent a Heraclitean flow, where everything is always becoming.

Cao’s sensitivity to material based on its weight, rhythm, and stillness resonates with Maurice Merleau-Ponty’s theory that space is not just a neutral container, but an expressive field of perception. Perceiving is not a detached observation but an immersive experience. Cao’s installations consequently transform into places of bodily interaction rather than being viewed only as objects. Their appearance demands orientation, raises awareness, and frequently involves a quiet form of submission.

Symobiosis (2022)
Exhibition of Symobiosis (2022)

Symobiosis, created in 2022, conducts a quiet dialogue between presence and absence, reminiscent of Merleau-Ponty’s philosophy, where void and volume are interconnected.

The work combines wood and glass of wood and glass evokes biological intimacy as well as material difference, echoing the exocarp and endocarp, or fruit’s outer and inner skins. Furthermore, the glass itself creates a negative contour that keeps the wood in dialogue rather than just revealing it. The blank becomes formative in this configuration.

The work itself represents is a tangible mediation that builds by interdependence, with the vulnerability and protection, solidity and fracture. Absence is just as important as the presence. Silence and restraint are not passive; they are essential. The Japanese aesthetic of mono no aware, or the painful awareness of temporary nature, is reflected by this sensibility. In Cao’s work, impermanence offers structure rather than being transient.

In Vajra Petals (2023), Di Cao explores a digital topography where symbols bloom and blend. The piece is created as a 3D modeling staging of bizarre pieces, such as pulsating petals, silvered hands, and ritual masks, and it becomes a modern iconography of metamorphosis. Its circular rather than linear logic echoes Heraclitus’s conviction that “everything flows,” that time, nature, and identity are all locked in an endless cycle.

Vajra Petals (2023) create a transitional zone where past and future, human and machine all dissolve into each other drawing from Daoist metaphysics. There is solely fluidity without any fixed point. Here the boundaries dissolve and only mirrored textures are present. Cao uses digital precision to render the organic uncanny and create the nature through 3D modeling. Like Borges’s infinite library or the language of Hölderlin, the work defies conclusion. The beauty of the work is it challenges the audience to navigate using intuition rather than pure logic.

Across both analogue and digital field, Cao creates a vocabulary of gestures,  which invites audiences to inhabit symbols rather than inhabit them. A tilt of wood, a mirrored curve, a scarlet bloom can all be a metaphors to read. His forms evoke a state of attention rather than just illuminating a concept. This traits aligns with Hölderlin’s poetic claim that man dwells poetically”, that our deepest comprehension of the universe could emerge from immersion in ambiguity rather than clarity.

Cao’s work does not seek grand narratives. Instead, it draws people into immersive experiences, where form becomes a carrier of sensation, and sensation becomes realization. He offers viewers a space of slowness, interiority, and suspension.

Taken as a whole, these works demonstrate an artist deeply attuned to the metaphysical aspects of form. Whether working with digital interfaces or sculpting from glass and wood, Di Cao reimagines old concepts for the modern sensorium. His works transform everyday symbols—fruit skins, flowers, human gestures—into silent gateways to the unknown. Here, there is neither spectacle nor assurance. Only movement. Only emergence.

Cao transcends object-making by incorporating Heraclitus’s endless flux, Merleau-Ponty’s embodied space, and Borges’ lyrical unknowability into his work. He draws us into atmospheres, places where cognition turns into touch and meaning dissolves into rhythm. These are dynamic systems rather than static pieces of art. They inquire, “How does this move me?” rather than, “What does this mean?”