The following text by the art dealer, art advisor, writer and curator Jeffrey Deitch originally appeared in Flash Art International no. 104 (October – November 1981).

Who decides which artists get shown, which critic gets printed, and which dealers get rich? Who decides which art world figures will attain world-class stature, joining the ranks of those who have a shot at eventually entering art history? For the vast majority of artists and others who hope to be able to contribute to, or take from the art historical continuum, the ‘system’ will forever remain a mystery. From certain quarters, the tastemakers are viewed as an impenetrable pantheon. And an ever-widening circle of bitter outcasts sees these tastemakers, whoever they are, as a corrupt cabal that responds not to quality, but to money.