Ambassador of the Arts
Being named as an Ambassador of the Arts is both job and title. To be an Ambassador is to be chosen from among the sea of talented creators and exalted to the rank of nobility - however temporarily - by the simple merit of your craft. Anyone, be they the lowest born to the son of an Emperor can be chosen, so long as the noble whose court they are being invited to sees adequate talent. While there can be more than one Ambassador of the Arts in a given court at a given time, it is still a high honor to be asked to perform the duties for a noble.
Perception
Social Status
The title of Ambassador of Art is an honorary granting of nobility. For the duration of the Ambassador's tenure within a given court, they are given all the rights of a low-ranked noble. This includes, but is far from limited to apartments of some kind within the city limits, a living wage, and invitations to gatherings of the court.
History
The tradition of being Ambassadors of Art started during the mid-Age of Exploration. With the rise of cultural spread, there was an opportunity for artists and performers to find an audience, as well as be a representative of their people. This led many artists - musicians especially - to begin joining voyages. This is a large part of the canonization of shanties, for instance, in the annals of the artistic lineage, as the musicians formalized, documented, and propagated what were previously very localized folk songs.
This invitation of artists to not only visit foreign courts, but be on retainer as performers for the nobility created a massive boom in cultural cross-pollination. Suddenly, you had Thespians from Antioch performing their epic poetry before the King of Kalastrad. You had Abian folk musicians singing in front of the Astozian Duchy. If someone was actually asked to remain as an Ambassador of the Arts, the traditions of their people took root in a new nation.
Now, Ambassadors of Art tend to fall into one of two roles: minstrel or savant. In the case of the minstrels, there is little respect had towards the artist in question. While not always artists of a spoken variety, the majority are simply asked to come before the noble whose court they occupy and entertain them - often at their own expense. In the case of the savant, the artist in question is held in high regard. The noble views their art as something worthy of position and title within the court simply by its own merit.
Type
Entertainment
Demand
Luxury
Famous in the Field
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