The tension between moral pursuits and personal authenticity

French Post-Impressionist Paul Gauguin created innovative, enduring paintings and sculptures set on Tahiti and other Pacific islands, but he had to leave his family to pursue his art. He also impregnated and abandoned multiple young teens, shattered his ankle in a drunken brawl, and at least once was photographed at a party playing the harmonium without pants; an example, psychology researcher Jordan Wylie said, of someone who lived as his true self while neglecting moral obligations and norms.