Is being able to separate the art from the artist an advantage or a disadvantage? How and why?

Here's the thing m'dear. Many years ago I had loved the work of an author. It was so long ago I don't remember whom it was  but what I do remember is subsequent to my loving what he wrote and how he wrote I learned about the kind of person he was. Isn't it funny I don't remember which author it was but what I do remember was the utter revulsion I felt  about him. I never read another thing that author wrote.  The knowledge of who the person was in real life completely cut me off from being able to ever again appreciate the work. Which led me to a conclusion. It is just like cutting a drum open to find out where the sound comes from. You destroy the drum in the process. Well digging into whom a person is can absolutely destroy one's view of him/her as it did with me. Now I cannot believe I am the only person in the world who would react that way. If I am that would be the only unique thing about me. Except for my exceptional curiosity I am very average in all other respects. Thank you for your reply Grasshopper and Happy Sunday! :)

Hello Rosie, I think you've got a point. However, in an attempt to justify my view, allow me to simplify the issue you describe.
You knew the work of a particular author.
You liked the work.
You discover something about the artist.
You decide what you discovered is highly disagreeable.
You no longer want to read the work.

So far, so good?
OK, so the artist is a repulsive person.

Isn't it surprising tha the knowledge about the man's character is sufficient to make his work less “enjoyable” than what it was in the past.

I think you’ll have to agree though that the work itself is clearly of the same calibre that you enjoyed before, so could one describe your reaction to cast aside such work as being irrational ….. or it is perhaps perfectly natural because people are led by their emotions?

Here’s a different scenario but it illustrates my point.

We’ve all, well, most of us have heard of great masters such as Michelangelo, just to pick one.

His works are sublime; they are masterpieces; the man was a genius.

So what do you suppose would happen if tomorrow, they discovered something about the man’s character that would really throw the cat amongst the pigeons, something really shocking?

How are we supposed to react?

Shield our eyes when walking past his frescoes, hide his paintings and the marbles in Florence?

That sounds ridiculous, doesn’t it?

Thank you for your very thoughtful and informative reply Liv. I don't know your age m'dear but you are definitely more mature than me. And I'm 79! Agewise I'm sure I'm way older than you but grown-up wise? Not so sure!   Happy Sunday! :)

I'm 23 lol, just like my Answermug ranking, and the license plate number for my town, so I guess I'm all about being 23.