“The question ‘What if Nike is the new Medicis?’ began as an art-world in-joke about a decade ago, but has grown less absurd over time. With the diminishing impact of traditional advertising, companies are seeking new ways to capture the attention and goodwill of the public. In exchange, brands provide financial opportunities to emerging artists. ‘In some ways, the goals are a little amorphous,’ Natasha Degen, a historian of the art market at New York’s Fashion Institute of Technology, told me. ‘The lines are becoming very blurred between corporate social responsibility, philanthropy, and marketing.’”