Can we separate the artist from the art?

Of course we can, or at least I can.

When I read a book, listen to music, watch a movie or look at a painting, I concentrate on the piece of art in question, not the person who made it. It doesn't matter if the artist was an idiot or had opinions I don't agree with, it doesn't influence my decision on whether I like that particular piece of art or not.

Of course sometimes, especially when we talk about books, the writer's views, ideas, and opinions are reflected in their work. In that case these ideas are a part of a book, and thus they'll be taken in consideration when I decide whether it is a good book or not.

On the other hand, we must remember, that a person may include things in their work that they don't really believe in. A very nice person can write something that includes themes I'm not comfortable with, and a total idiot can write something that fits into my world.

I think we should judge books, songs, movies and paintings as pieces of art and artists as humans, two separate things. (On a second thought, I don't think we really need to judge anything, just form our own opinions, remember that we don't know everything about everything and leave it at that.)