Can a work of art be separated from its creator? The question that has engaged some of our greatest philosophers is soon also to engage a Channel 4 studio audience, which is to be presented with works by such artists as Hitler, Eric Gill and Rolf Harris. (Decisions will be mediated by Jimmy Carr via a hammer.)
Before we get to the show, over which much outrage has been generated, I want to advance a theory. My answer to this question is that you can quite easily separate art from its creator – as long as the art is bad. Hitler’s postcard watercolours are perfectly safe to consume as there is nothing of him in them. They might have been created by any number of sentimental daubers who failed (twice) to get into art school. When art is good though, the artist has transferred some of their soul into it. They cannot help but reveal themselves. Gill’s stuff is very dangerous.
