Imagine if the only goal in art was to "Save the Artist":
-It didn't matter if the artist had talent,
-It didn't matter if the art was beautiful,
-It didn't matter if the art inspired or spoke to people, because it didn't matter if the art was even seen!
All that matters is that we, the buyers, "support the artist" so that they can keep doing what they do. If we do this then an entire economy can continue sucking in dollars and the artists keep their jobs. That's admirable, right?
Well, that's the artificially propped industry that caused me to run, not walk, away from the art world. Success, as measured in dollars, does not support the art itself, but only the people making their living off art. The artist becomes a pawn in a much bigger game. He answers to the income he generates while the economy vampires behind the scenes. Sometimes the artist profits too, if that matters to the art, but either way he's just a pawn: a figure for customers to support. "Save the artist."
And it's this threat which will destroy cider too. Is this drink a flash-in-the-pan "value-added" product, or will we all be drinking cider from cider orchards 30 years from now? If you are worried about jobs I can promise you the cider will suffer. If the cider suffers, there is no future. Just focus on the art itself and the relationship to your trees, not your ability to sell the product. Yes, answered Candide, but let us cultivate our gardens.
And if you insist on putting the trade above the product, I'll toast you with champagne in 2043.
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