http://www.nybooks.com/daily/2017/11/01/the-problem-with-problematic/
Prose goes on...
This is, like, super problematic:
I don't require my artists to be good people. In my mind, the only requirement is that they create great art. If they create great art and go to prison or get sued for something, even if it's related, especially if it's related, that does not in any way, shape, or form negate the greatness of their art.
I find it troubling that the Weinstein Co. is removing H.W.'s producer credits from series' he produced. He produced those shows. I don't care if he raped 1000 unicorn babies, he still produced those shows. If you give yourself to your art, there might not be much left to share with the rest of the world. If what's left is despicable, that does not negate the art. The art stands on its own. People live short, brutish lives. Some people are willing to shove their short, brutish lives on the off chance of artistic immortality. If what's leftover is despicable, we should not be surprised.
Bring me your cretins, your degenerates, your yahoos and martyrs and lunatics. Show me their art. If it is good, it is good, and we should judge them based on the quality of their artistic efforts. Let God judge their character, for it is not up to us to decide. If their art is bad, they should do something else.
Norman Mailer stabbed his wife. Hunter Thompson pointed a gun at his wife, pulled the trigger, and missed. Valerie Solanas shot Andy Warhol. Van Gogh disfigured himself. Sylvia Plath drowned herself in oven fumes. All of them were unstable people you would have been happy to have in your life.
