What might a rhetorical theory approach look like that extends its hand to the field of intermedia studies? Based on this question and murals against the war in Ukraine, I emphasise the importance of developing an ontological understanding of rhetoric. Such rhetoric is no longer orientated along the axis of sender/receiver, speaker/audience, artist/viewer, but takes into account the communicative exchange we are all part of in our everyday lives. Such rhetoric is no longer just about strategic choices but allows the affective enactments to play a greater role in our understanding of communication.