By the end of the 18th Century, however, there were several such authors. The same process affected composers. Yet the patronage system did not really go away, Griffin notes. Instead of wealthy individuals selecting favorite artists to sponsor, contemporary patronage is disguised as other things. A more indirect form of patronage comes from those who make annual contributions to libraries, museums, symphony orchestras.
Audience members are, in effect, patrons of the arts.
In late 20th Century America, the marketplace model for the arts often comes in for a pounding from some quarters. To question the awarding of direct government subsidies to artists and arts organizations is to court the scorn of some arts lovers, who see the marketplace as a crude and unreliable arbiter of true worth. Cowen says that such a position is historically myopic. The market brings crowd-pleasing artists such as Michael Jackson or Steven Spielberg . . . Cowen chalks it up to cultural pessimism, or the belief that the world's best days are behind it.