well, NO DUH.

art, fashion and music don't exist for the sake of creativity itself. it's a big cash cow. anyone who thinks that art exists for the sake of art is sadly mistaken.

even the founders of the constitution realized this - congress was explicitly given the power to "promote the progress of science and useful arts, by securing for limited times to authors and inventors the exclusive right to their respective writings and discoveries." u.s. const. art. 1 sec. 8.

basically, the founders of the constitution wanted creative types to create and be paid for it. realizing that creations like books (and musical compositions and art) would benefit the public, and if protected, would give artists the incentive to create and establish an economic value to the creations, the founders inserted that clause (known as the "copyright clause") into the constitution.

the "warhol economy" is nothing new, and it really doesn't deserve a buzzfeed, because the concept, as it exists in this country, is over 200 years old. that's right. it's old school. way old school. it is also a concept codified in the statute of anne in england in 1709, which gave exclusive rights to authors rather than printers.

anyway, art tells a story and beautifies the world, but it is also a product with economic value to be bought and sold in the market. and a product that has an economic value will attract people to profit from the product, thereby creating industries that trade in the product.

for example, a singer-songwriter's product, depending on its value, may have the following people/entities swirling around it: the producer, the sound engineer, the studio owner, the people who created protools, gibson guitars, side artists, personal managers, business managers, agents, a & r executives, marketers, cd cover artists, drooling interns, club owners, club promoters, light and sound technicians, the tour bus owner, the tour bus driver, music magazines, mtv, vh1, fuse, broadcast radio, internet radio, itunes, record stores, and of course, the lowly entertainment lawyer. :)

and the fine art market has become mature and complex enough for some folks to start a hedge fund trading in art futures.

art as a product is an idea entrenched in western thought (at least from the age of enlightenment), and it's always amusing to see people "discover" this concept as if it were new.