While I do believe that most genuine artists are motivated primarily by the joys of creation, I also believe we will be more productive if we don't have to work a second job to support our art habit. Art is a service, not a product. Created beauty is a relationship, and a relationship with the Holy at that. End of sermon. Back to business.
Patronage is both a relationship and a service.
It is a relationship that supported genius during the Renaissance and supports it today. Da Vinci, Michelangelo, and Botticelli all shared the support of both the Medicis and, through Pope Leo X, the Catholic church. Bach had a series of patrons, most notably the Duke of Weimar. In fact, patronage never went away. It just changed its appearance.