Let me be blunt: Subtlety sucks. This statement might anger you. Most of us take for granted that subtlety, in the arts, is a virtue. You can see it in our critical language: It’s common to say that a ...

In his piece “Against Subtlety,”, Slate writer Forrest Wickman argues that critical emphasis on subtlety is wrong and art should, in fact, be more heavy-handed and direct. To put my reaction into ...