"Meanwhile, society doesn’t necessarily feel the need to foster, support, or otherwise offer tutelage to artists, outside of what are a few and quite questionable “sponsorships” or contests."

That's nonsense. Artist Taylor Swift is on track to become a billionaire this year because a lot of people really like her art. On the other end, a singer songwriter slips in a couple of their own compositions in between covers in a coffee shop for money in a bucket. There is Kehinde Wiley who is deservedly well paid for his fantastic paintings, and someone who does quick portraits of people at county fairs for twenty bucks.

Every year I go to several arts festivals where artists live in a camper and sell their works of painting, crafts, jewelry , and there is always live music. They do their work at home in off season months and then travel the festival circuit in the summer selling it. Tens of thousands of artists do this, and make a living at it because people happily pay for the art they create.

Society fosters art by providing venues where it can seen, performances can happen, and the artist can make money. Artists aren't owed anything more than anyone else., and the laws of economics apply to them as well. If they can't create something other people appreciate enough to pay for, they need to find something else to do.

Incidentally, most famous Impressionist artists were recognized and made money. Claude Monet recieved fabulous sums for his paintings. The primary reason that Van Gogh couldn't sell paintings while he was alive was because personally he was emotionally disturbed. Read a biography or watch the film Lust for Life. No one wants to do business with a person they don't like.