What do we do with the work of immoral artists? There is no one clear and simple answer applicable across the board: Each artist and piece of art must be evaluated separately within their own context.

The most egregious cases of artist’s immorality is when they use their art to attempt to redeem themselves. For example, in 1994, the singer Aaliyah released a song titled “Age Ain’t Nothing but a Number.” She was fifteen at the time. The song was written and produced by R. Kelly, who was twenty-seven. R. Kelly was the young singer’s mentor—this is not uncommon, as many young artists have mentors, so no problem so far. The trouble started when a marriage certificate was introduced to the public, showing that the two were legally married. With this piece of evidence available, the song suddenly becomes an older man using his art to justify his sexual and romantic relationship with an impressionable teenager. This is socially and morally inappropriate, and we probably shouldn’t listen to the song—there’s plenty of other music out there.

There are, of course, artists who’s immoral actions never cross with their art. Take the case of Kevin Spacey, who has allegedly acted sexually inappropriately towards a number of young men (and some women). When these allegations came to light, he was fired from his current television show and dropped by his agent and publicist. Should we, as consumers of his films and television shows, stop watching? Pay It Forward is one of my favorite movies, a film with no themes about sex with minors or rape allegations. With this example, the answer is much more muddy.

An important point that Matthes brings up in his book is not separating the art from the artist. “Some would have us focus on the artist’s immorality and forget their art. Others act as if art is so important that an artist’s behavior can’t touch it. Both of these perspectives are mistaken. It’s ultimately irrelevant whether we can separate the art from the artist, because we shouldn’t.” It is important to integrate our feelings about the art with our feelings about the artist and embrace whatever bittersweet taste this may evoke. The philosopher Immanuel Kant was racist, but our author and I both “think there is tremendous value in reflecting on Kant’s work, much of which has nothing to do with his racist views and is arguably inconsistent with them.” Kant’s additions to philosophy are important and should be studied. He was also explicitly racist. We must swallow both pills together.

These pills can sometimes feel too large to swallow. Most often, this happens when our trust in an artist is broken. We trust artists because they have a way of bringing complex feelings and ideas further into understanding. “We often feel that our aesthetic loves have a unique ability to eloquently articulate or express our deepest values and commitments in ways that we, less artistically talented folk, are incapable of.” We trust them to take us on a journey, to evoke emotion, to make us think and evaluate beauty. When this trust is broken by an artist’s immoral dealings, we can feel betrayed. When we feel betrayed, we want justice, often (and most recently) via ‘cancellation.’ But cancelling someone is really just a blunt tool, for it does not take into account any of the nuances of what actually occurred. Did the artist transgress on purpose? Do they feel as though their actions are acceptable or do they also morally condemn themselves? The internet mob has no space for nuance, only painting in broad strokes. “When an artist betrays us it doesn’t follow that we must simply abandon their work, any more than we would just abandon a lifelong friend on the heels of a betrayal. To be sure, betrayal can and perhaps should reshape the character of our relationship, but to end a valuable relationship is the last resort, not the first.”

This sentiment brings us back to our original conclusion: Each artist and their art must be evaluated separately. Sometimes conclusions are made on an individual level: we might choose to stop watching Kevin Spacey’s movies because of his sexual misconduct allegations, but we also might not. Personally, I still love the movie Pay It Forward, and will watch it again someday. Sometimes these conclusions are made by the whole group: we should all collectively condemn Bill Cosby and his work now that we understand what a horrible and abusive person he was behind the scenes. The points to be made are simple: do not separate the artist from their art, and evaluate each instance with precision, not broad strokes. Evaluating the work of immoral artists is by definition a muddy practice, so don’t be afraid to get dirty.