An economist is someone who studies the production and distribution of goods and services. Artists have to be aware of the trends that are current to have a chance at successfully making a living out of their work. They say “the market decides” in business because the market does decide.
One day the market ignores the disinfectant spray section at the grocery store and walks past the small shelve space for face masks in another aisle. Then a pandemic happens and the market makes these items the main priority. It’s similar with art that sells. The market decides what they want to buy and the artist needs to be at the forefront of these trends.
This is probably necessary only until the artist builds a network of collectors who purchase any of the their work simply because they like the aesthetic of their work. Until then, it’s important for artists to be economists and study what goods and services (art or creative services) are produced and how it’s distributed amongst the art aficionados.
Artists who choose to ignore this have an advantage which is that they can be free to create whatever they want whenever they want. That’s a very small percentage of artists. Until one works their way up to that — then understanding the market is on the to-do list.