Art, Commerce, and the Role of the Patron

Nowadays, we take for granted the concept of "art for art's sake." But for Renaissance artists, their work was often intimately tied up in the instructions and desires of their powerful patrons.

Primavera, Sandro Botticelli ca. approximately 1480. Botticelli created many works for the powerful Medici family; it is possible that Primavera was one of them. Via Wikimedia Commons.

Last fall, when I decided to create The Crossroads Gazette, I knew early on that I wanted to call my paid subscribers “patrons.” The word “patron” possesses greater mystique than “subscriber,” and given that art is one of the main topics explored in this publication, it seemed a fitting decision. Thus, the Patron Podcast and the Crossroads patron community was born.

But what exactly is a patron? According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the word comes from the Latin patronus, a protector or defender of clients. (Harry Potter fans will no doubt recognize the patronus as a powerful protective spell.) The earliest known use of patron in Middle English comes from the Life & Martyrdom of Thomas Becket, written around 1300. The word possesses various meanings, including a supporter of the arts, a customer o…