The development of a new expressive aesthetic, which placed the artist at the centre of the creative process, greatly enhanced his self-esteem and - eventually - his status. It also opened the way for him to become the high priest of the sacralized culture which increasingly became a supplement to, or even a substitute for, organized religion, as the construction of museums, theatres, opera-houses, and concert-halls in the style of classical temples demonstrated.

---T. C. W. Blanning, "Introduction", in The Oxford Illustrated History of Modern Europe