Material conditions apply. True profit occurs when our actions improve material conditions in pareto efficient way. Art that makes us better off is more valuable than art that does not... definitionally.
The art market is a very interesting one - in both that it's driven in large part by human factors ( psychological ), and it's quite open to manipulations of various sorts.
If you want to study pathologies markets can accrue then in my view the art market is a very good area to study.