This is true for all art. I don't feel much emotion from an early renaissance marian icon but I do feel a lot of emotion when experiencing an Agnes Martin painting. The point is that abstract art is not emotionless.
Reflecting on this more, I'm not sure traditional illustrations actually do much for me in general. I am incredibly deeply moved by certain examples of photography, cinematography (both with and without explicit storytelling attached), architecture, and engineering, but I don't think paintings in general have much of an impact on me emotionally.