Would you boycott art because you dislike the creator?

If we somehow found out that Shigeru Miyamoto, or another game designer, was actually Adolf Hitler in disguise? Yes, I would have to boycott all his games.

But mostly I try to separate the art from the artist.

EDIT: Oh damn, you've already got Hitler in your poll, LMAO

@christaran said:

No, it just means that people are utterly complex and multi-faceted, with no one being absolutely good or horrible.

"Just when you'd think they were more malignant than ever Hell could be, they could occasionally show more grace than Heaven ever dreamed of. Often the same individual was involved." -Good Omens

Besides, I think Hitler donated a negligible amount (if any) of his money from selling paintings to the Nazis. IIRC, he got into politics because he failed as an artist. Would funding Hitler's paintings to keep him occupied as an artist instead of becoming a tyrant be an anti-boycott, then?

You either hate and abstain from all forms of bigotry, or you welcome all of it. You can't pick and choose. Seeing as how your brother thinks "because he's a Mormon" is valid reasoning, I suggest you tell him to relax and enjoy life. Remind him there are hundreds of people working on the film that don't share OSC's views, so he's being really pretentious and selfish if he still thinks a boycott of the film is the "just" thing to do.

I don't agree with most peoples opinions on anything, so I try not to let that get in the way of me and enjoying something.

I would buy Hitler's album

@arbitrarywater said:

I actually totally agree with this, any aspect of the story that I like is completely overshadowed by howterribly written it is. Still, I will probably see this to piss my brother off.

I'm not buying Fez because Phil Fish's nonsense so I'm certainly not buying some movie if some cultist is getting a dime.

I fucking love that book.

And yeah, his Nazi side only surfaced after his sensitive painter side had withered and died of cynicism.

I wouldn't call it a boycott, but art that is produced by people who have morally reprehensible behavior or beliefs has to meet a higher threshold of quality than most in order for me to want to look at it.

Absolutely not. The more I hate an artist the more I like their work.

Kanye West. That's all I'm gonna say.

Hitler's political writings are also well thought out and compelling in a lot of ways.

Dan Carlin quoted them in his recent podcast on WWI a bit and they were very well written.

There's being an asshole and there's doing morally repugnant shit. There's a huge gap between thinking Kanye West/Roger Waters are assholes because they interrupt awards shows and spit on fans, and boycotting someone like OSC who directly contributes to anti-gay legislation. (Granted, Kanye's also been getting in actual scuffles lately, and that's not so cool.)

But it's a case-by-case basis. I don't expect everyone to hate/skip Ender's Game because he's gross, but I probably will. Hell, Ender's Game isn't even directly funding OSC, it's just increasing his pull.

That said, I'd encourage most people to see the several better films out right now that aren't related to an actively bigoted prick like Card. It's not like we're in a drought for good movies or anything.

He was an obscenely well-spoken individual, for sure. He's comparable to Abraham Lincoln in that regard. Opposite in almost every other way, though.

There is nothing hypocritical about your stance.

You like art even if the artist is objectionable. Nothing wrong with that whatsoever.

Art is an expression and an expression doesn't tie you to endorsing a person in any way.

An interesting comparison.

But yes a very well known speaker and a compelling writing. He rose to power for a reason.

Anyways, I don't have to endorse a single thing he did to appreciate his writing. Part of why I don't get this whole argument, but hey. People are free to believe or do what they want, that's the thing.

For me it is a case by case basis.

I disagree with Card's views, especially when he starts talking about rising up against a government that approves gay marriage or whatnot.

But that would not be enough to make me not see the movie, as he is just the crazy guy that wrote the source material.

If he pushed a bit further, however, that might change.

As another example, I'm currently reading some Lovecraft as research for a story I am writing. It is my first real exposure to him, and the blatant racism allegories (where not stated outright) are hard for me to tolerate, even in the context of the time it was written.

Look I think the creator of FEZ is an asshat but FEZ is badass... Now if He used that money in an active attempt to kill all the Alpacas in the world...That would suck and then even though I Really like FEZ, I like ALPACAS more.

No, it's fucking insane behavior to try to organize a boycott for that movie. And I really, really fucking hate that book. Don't go see it because it'll probably be a shitty cash-in on a mediocre book, not because the author is a prick. Do you realize how many things you wouldn't actually get to see or experience because the creator is a piece of shit?

If Hitler made a game I would pirate it.

If you believe games are art, then I already boycott art because I refuse to buy Activision and Blizzard games.

Honestly, it depends on the person. I think to a certain extent a lot of really great artists are assholes who say/believe/do terrible awful things. Hell, I think to be a GREAT artist, you have to be fucked up in some ways.

That being said, I probably won't go see Ender's Game. I read all of the books (at least on the Ender's side... never got around to the Shadow series) but that was a long time ago. Not giving OSC my money is sort of just a perk - I just honestly have no desire to see it. All I can say is that I hope people enjoy it, and that it isn't awful.

Also Hitler's paintings weren't that good.

I would and I have. I simply cannot separate the artist from the art.

There's a money to terribleness ratio. I'd never pay for an Orson Scott Card novel, or to see this film, but I'd watch it for free or buy one of his books from a used books store, but Orson Scott Card is a pretty extreme case. I also haven't eaten Chic-fil-a since that kerfuffle a couple years back. Those are the only two times I've consciously boycotted something, but I would never force this on anyone else.

I think the creator of Fez is amazing and I really enjoy that dude. Also, Fez is a fantastic game.

To be fair, there's nothing wrong with being critical of Mormons (or any religion really). Let's not forget that it was established canon in the Mormon religion that black people were unclean and unfit to enter heaven. Not to mention that they have some pretty unhealthy views on sexuality along with a lot of other unsavory stuff.

As for "boycotting" art, it really depends. I don't think Hitler was a very good painter. What I saw of his work is very bland and lacks anything worth discussing (oddly enough I REALLY like George W. Bush's self-portraits). But if he WAS, I'd have no problem with buying his work. Mainly because his art isn't a result or motivated by antisemitism.

With something like Ender's Game, it's very clear that his personal views are integral to his art. So even if I didn't know that it was going to be garbage, I still wouldn't go to see it.

There's also other things to consider. I like H.P. Lovecraft even though he's a terrible writer, but there's quite a few stories of his that are completely racist. The focus of his work isn't really racially motivated though, so it's pretty clear that although he was kind of racist, it wasn't a driving force for him.

I have let it get to me. I haven't played Fez because the very idea of it reminds me of Phil Fish, and I just thoroughly and perhaps irrationally dislike that dude. Other times I just enjoy the art separate from the artist. I don't have a code that I live by or anything.

I don't care one bit if someone is an asshole in a Phil Fish kinda way. If he makes a game i like i'll play it.

I would care greatly if a creator used his money and name to promote anti-gay marriage politics or something like that.

The movie is probably more than an arm's reach away from Orson: Orson had little to do with the movie. Don't boycott if it was simply based on an author's work because you will hurt the actual artist's feelings: the directors, producers, script-writers and all those who made the film will want to find work again.

If you were to boycott Orson's books, however...

In Pavlovian terms, boycotting a piece of art because of it's creator is sending a counterintuative message to the creator. If the piece of art is irrelevant to the creator's unwanted opinion, then boycotting the art would discourage the artist from making a piece of art that was irrelevant to the artist's opinion. This artist might later make art that expresses that unwanted opinion because the artist would be out of options, and you would be out of good books to read.

Enders Game was a pretty mediocre book at best. Nerd revenge fantasy wrapped up in a tidy justification blanket. Plus OSC is an asshole. I feel pretty good about spending my money on anything related.

Definitely not, that's a great way to miss out on something that might otherwise enrich your perspective. I have a powerful irrational aversion to Bono but it ain't gonna stop me listening to U2.

Hell, I try to give time to even the most flat out disagreeable material every now and then. Avoiding something teaches you nothing about why you disagree with it.

say hello to my abusive relationship with comic book creators.

Nope, i'm also capable of befriending people who's opinions i disagree with.

Opinions don't make monsters, ideological complacency does, and it does so from both sides of every fence.

Nope not in the slightest .... even if I hate the person to no end , heck I also think that Hitler wasnt a terrible painter , if only academia at the time admited him there would be no WW2 and the miriad of atrocities that happened.

Well WW2 would have still happened, but the genocide probably wouldn't have.

The author is dead, man.

In the case of art, absolutely not. I might look at an artist more favorably if they share my opinions and beliefs or if an artist stays away from anything that can be deemed controversial, but ultimately the quality and my personal enjoyment of the art trumps all.

I monetarily support all sort of businesses and artists, and I'm certain that many, many of them personally or monetarily support things I disagree with.

I think it's part of being a functioning and reasonable human being. I'll help you fix your flat tire without asking whom you voted for in the last election or where you stand on the abortion issue.

Richard Wagner is probably the most famous composers of opera of all time. His operas are still played and have completely entered into mass culture. He also wrote a book called "Jewishness in Music." Wagner claims that the work was written to:

explain to ourselves the involuntary repellence possessed for us by the nature and personality of the Jews, so as to vindicate that instinctive dislike which we plainly recognize as stronger and more overpowering than our conscious zeal to rid ourselves thereof.

For example, we've all heard ride of the valkyries:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V92OBNsQgxU

Unless their personal views are overtly shoved into something- no. But I still think Orson Scott Card is a huge cunt.

I have nothing to add to this discussion but I would just like to preach this person's message.

Case by case basis. I can't live without my phone, and if it turned out Google was funnelling all of their money into a kill-all-puppies charity, I would probably still be okay.

What author are you referring to?

Orson Scott Card is still alive.

So one of the films stars has come out in support of Gay marriage, a certain Harrison Ford. Maybe one of the camera men or the FXs guys don't believe in Climate change. Can you see how deep this hole goes?

Edit: Shadow complex was fucking great, and if you boycotted it you really missed out

Because my birthday is April 20th, i find this extremely funny.

I think there's a difference between buying art despite the artist's 'troubles' and buying it because of them.

For example, in the latter category I'd put all those yuppie scumbags who spent many thousands of dollars on John Wayne Gacy paintings.

Depends, there is probably a lot of art and content I consume from people that I would intensely disagree with if I were aware of their personal views. I mean, a lot of these content producers probably think I deserve to be torture for all eternity, I am sorta used to the accusation. Then there are people who put those views out there, for better or worse. Some people are going to agree with them, and probably be more likely to buy that product. Some people will disagree with them, and be more likely NOT to buy that product.

I think that is fine. Somebody can't really be expected to research the background of everything they purchase to make sure that it aligns 100% with their morals before they buy it, but if it is put out there and it bothers you, by all means. I wouldn't buy any Orson Scott Card product personally, but if somebody else is bothered less by him, that is their prerogative. I wouldn't buy Fez either, but a lot of people dug that game too, which is fine for them.

@nottle: Well then, do I have the perfect birthday present for you!

I never have. Roman Polanski made some amazing movies, I hate Snoop Dogg but his first album is ok and as for Charles Manson...well he wrote some great pieces of music

I feel like true art represents the artist. If you like the art but don't like the artist maybe there is something else you should be looking at about yourself. If you really don't like the artist then you probably wont be a fan of their art either. Boycotting isn't necessary to not consume/purchase/appreciate art if you already don't like it.

Kanye is starting to test my "No" response for the first time.