In a secular world where religion is increasingly unable to move us to a higher sphere, art is our path to the transcendent, to a sense of awe. It is as crucial to judge the work of an artist apart from the life of the artist as it is to separate the science from the scientists.Īrt, Wynton Marsalis, once said, is what separates humans from animals. But more importantly, artists, like scientists, deal with Truths with a capital T and are as indispensable as scientists in leading the species toward a higher understanding of what it means to live in the world. Yes, scientists deal with facts and theories and artists deal with philosophies and aesthetics. It is as crucial to judge the work of an artist apart from the life of the artist as it is to separate the science from the scientists. You probably know where I’m going with this. Would we not say that it’s absolutely imperative in a civilized country to separate the science from the scientists? But let’s say those were facts, not fiction. Wait til you hear what Alexander Fleming, who discovered the antibiotic, did. And I don’t think that people should take penicillin or allow their kids to.

I hear that Isaac Newton molested several young boys. You know what? I don’t believe in gravity anymore. Want another take? Here's Maria Garcia's argument that we cannot separate art from the artists who created it. (Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP) This article is more than 4 years old.

Beethoven by Michael Hamburger