Do artists make art...

...or does art make artists?

I picked up the camera club adjudications on well-known photographers from Gordon McGregor. It's a few years old, but ever relevant. Something like Mike Johnson's famous post. Got me thinking - is it considered art because artists made it? I think some of the camera club comments are actually quite incisive - just because someone has told us it's art or by some well-known, do we really have to think it's good?

Of course, Mike J was getting at the other end of things. These are great photographs by photographers who became famous because they took great photographs.

Thus my question. And I think it is maybe generational. Surely someone creating great work gets to become known as an artist. Just calling yourslef an artist does not mean what you do is art. Unfortunately, I think the contemporary art wolrd rather has the cart before the horse.