Re: The Myth of Meritocracy in Fine Arts - to CK

Hi CK,

Thank you for your thoughtful comments.

Rather than addressing individual points you raised, I am going to respond =
to your overall sentiment.

If I understand you correctly, your main point is the difference between wh=
at is personally/subjectively good and what the market considers good. You =
argue that they are independent of one another. And, furthermore you feel t=
hat the former is hierarchically superior to the latter. This hierarchy is =
not a modern phenomenon. Not just in art, but virtually in every field, the=
western culture has always believed in this hierarchy of substance over no=
n-substance, like mind over body, reality over words, or achievement over f=
ame. It is this hierarchy that I wanted to deconstruct in my essay.

The view that an artist holds artistic/creative substance independent of hi=
s audience is a common one. The image of 'artist