The strongest interpretation of your argument, that the entire art market is a scheme to deprive rich fools of their money, with no role for taste and real diff

The strongest interpretation of your argument, that the entire art market is a scheme to deprive rich fools of their money, with no role for taste and real differentiation of artistic worth is obviously untrue. Van Gogh May have known some other artists and gallerists but he sold more or less nothing during his lifetime. I’m confident there are other examples in fine art and god knows Banksy and Shepard Fairey didn’t come up out of a traditional fine art background either. A weaker form, that the art world is incredibly incestuous and that who you know is incredibly important is true, but it still doesn’t make the entire art world a scam. Artists and gallerists believe in what they’re doing. I presume most of the rich buying art are doing so in part based on personal taste too.