Gallery hoppers, Spotify stalkers, bookworms, Letterboxd users and anyone who enjoys art, this is the place for you. Makes Ya Feel highlights art across all of its mediums, small and large-scale, that (you guessed it) makes ya feel!
One of my favorite songs by the British band Broadcast, “Winter Now,” opens with the simple, punchy lyric “Snow lies all around, there’s no sense of doubt.” While I am currently away from the snowglobe that is Middlebury winter, I still find the lyric resonates even when the ground beneath me is concrete.
The undoubtedly bleak wintertime is perfect for consuming art. Whether in the solace of a cozy room or beneath warm lighting with those you hold dear, art can soothe and inspire us.
So, here is my list of art for the cold. The kind of things I turn to as a reminder that even the grayest-blues of the season can be comforting. And a pro tip: a hot beverage is required to enjoy these to their fullest potential (my favorite is any tea that has plum in it).
Album — Pet Grief by The Radio Dept.
Swedish band The Radio Dept. specializes in hazy, whimsical instrumentals overlaid with vocals so subtle they could be a whisper. They boast references that span across several time periods and genres, such as Frank Sinatra, Saint Etienne and Joy Division.
“Pet Grief” is their second studio album and was released in 2006. While a little rougher around the edges compared to their later releases, I find this album perfect for winter. Though anticlimactic, it’s so fuzzy that it almost appears shy, underneath a few layers lie its core — the ability to stand still. In “Pet Grief,” time becomes gestures and winter becomes warmer.
Titular track two is a synth-heavy two-step despite its honest lyrics, “You think you know someone, right? Maybe you never did and how that scares you.” A contrast which, to me, perfectly encapsulates winter. It's a dance and a lull; everything wonderful and terrifying all wrapped into one.
My favorite track, “A Window,” takes a more reserved approach. With a trance-like guitar and simple lyrics, it envelopes you without holding on too tightly. “I don’t consider this a chance, or a window. Still proud of it,” lead singer Johan Duncanson muses. The song is all about embracing uncertainty, and while winter feels endless, this song helps to remind me that there is so much more ahead.
Other tracks feature similar perceptions. Upbeat “What Will Give” advises you to “Be sensitive. Keep it pure. Be secretive,” while “Always a Relief” sits in confusion, wanting “to feel the illusion” and the lush guitar in “Every Time” ping pongs between feelings of guilt and indifference. It is the perfect album to revisit, and I always turn to it when winter has me feeling especially sentimental.
Book — Fantasy: Invention, Creativity, and Imagination in Visual Communications
by Bruno Munari
Over the summer, I decided to take a gamble and judge a book by its cover; a paintbrush whose bristles had been braided with bows attached to the ends. The result was not only deeply thought-provoking but also inspiring.
“Fantasy” is about how Munari views creativity, but it eventually becomes a challenge for his readers to look inward and think about their own creative processes. A large portion is devoted to how children understand creativity and the importance of allowing them to “be” so they can understand the millions of possibilities.
What struck me the most was Munari’s definition of fantasy: “Another, more complex, instance of the workings of fantasy, invention, and creativity involves connections between connections.” Munari goes on to describe how many different combinations one can make to connect things to one another. Not only is it a rather interesting meditation on creativity, but it also shows how everything is interconnected.
Sometimes I struggle to motivate myself creatively, especially in the winter. But this month, I have found Munari’s pages are great ones to look back on. For him, creativity is universally accessible; all that is required is time. Fantasy and creativity are everywhere, he argues, and “A creative person is both a recipient of and a contributor to the culture of a community, flourishing alongside it.”
Movie — All We Imagine as Light by Payal Kapadia
While working on my thesis about transportation, a friend recommended I watch this film as a reference. I finally got around to it this month, and was immediately enamored by how alive it is. Set in Mumbai, the film follows two roommates who work as nurses at a local hospital. Prabha is older and is coping with her estranged husband, who lives in Germany, while Anu is younger and navigating what it means to build meaningful relationships.
Beyond the incredibly touching performances, this film also depicts transportation in such an incredible way. Open-air trains and buses not only connect characters to the city, but to one another. Everything ebbs and flows alongside each other, and the result is a film that oozes with compassion even in its subtle moments.
Anu and Prabha giggle, dance, fight and go in circles around each other. Some of their most memorable moments are the mundane ones; the two women admiring a rice cooker, looking out bus windows and speaking softly to each other. Every little act resonates with compassion.
As I wrap up my thesis this January, this film has not only been a great resource, but also a great lesson. When winter chills me with dissonance, this film reminds me that connection is truly everywhere: lLingering within our inanimate objects, seeping out from the people we encounter and woven into the spaces we occupy.
Ellie Trinkle '26 (she/her) is the Senior Arts and Culture Editor.
She previously served as a News Editor and Staff Writer. She is a Film & Creative writing double major from Brooklyn who loves all things art. You can typically find her obsessively making Spotify playlists, wearing heaps of jewelry, or running frantically around campus.
