this is, primarily, a matter of authenticity. specifically, the level of authenticity you are willing to embody in public spaces.

any representation of yourself is going to be fragmented, in some way. a piece of the whole. no one on this planet can ever claim to know you in your entirety, especially not through the abstraction of the internet.

everyone has different thresholds, or tolerance levels, for the incongruencies between their various perceived selves. some people actively fear being known. others crave it desperately. regardless, it is ultimately up to you how you would like to present yourself in your own spaces—and in doing so, you are pitting your own personal comfort against whatever perceived level of comfort your existing audience already has.

maybe it's "safer" to be insincere, to keep paying lip service to the person you once were, or once thought you wanted to be. i wouldn't fault anyone for doing so, especially if income or other societal pressures are tangled up in it.

but, for me, my artwork is a vehicle for personal expression, first and foremost. and i'd rather be rejected for who i am than accepted under false pretenses, personally.