Wouldn't you go further and argue that its also the decline of socialism (and social realism) that have also been a mediating factor? And perhaps, more intentionally, an active push by capitalist classes (who have always funded art, as you mentioned in a previous post) to promote artistic expression that is not antithetical to capitalism or capitalist ideology?
You might take a look at the novels of Wallace Stegner and Richard Russo.
Wouldn't you go further and argue that its also the decline of socialism (and social realism) that have also been a mediating factor? And perhaps, more intentionally, an active push by capitalist classes (who have always funded art, as you mentioned in a previous post) to promote artistic expression that is not antithetical to capitalism or capitalist ideology?