After many years of being immersed in the world of art — from my first sale at the Washington Square Outdoor Art exhibit at age 18 to the end of my tenure as president of the Artists Federation in 1996 — I have come to the conclusion that I have absolutely no idea what contemporary art is all about.

I can’t for the life of me understand why some works sell for fabulous amounts while others end up in tawdry yard sales. What I do know is that I love beauty and that means I have little respect for today’s world of art and fashion. Of course, there are exceptions to every rule.

I don’t believe I’m the only one befuddled by what becomes popular art these days, and I feel most of the great artists of the past could not succeed in this market. There are many who feel like Tom Hanks’s character in the TV comedy “Bosom Buddies” when he mocked gallery-goers lauding a white canvas with a large red circle in the center. “It’s the flag of Japan,” he said, shaking his head in wonderment.

I’ve concluded that to succeed today an artist has to have a famous name or a gimmick, rather than extraordinary talent. I’d probably sell more paintings as a columnist than I did as a dedicated artist. Ron Wood of the Rolling Stones just sold a painting for a million dollars. Was it worth it? I don’t know, but I’ll have a chance to judge this weekend, when his work will be available at Artexpo New York 2007 in the Jacob Javits Center, along with some work Jimi Hendrix created just before his death. Paul Stanley of the rock group Kiss will be appearing Saturday between 1 and 3 p.m. to sign his work, and another surprise guest artist will be there this weekend.

Artexpo (artexpos.com) is the first exception to my disdain for the current art industry. Granted, not all of the huge convention center will be filled with great art, but there is definitely something to please everyone.

This year, the exhibit will also be providing a public service. One of the most despicable actions public school administrators do when asked to trim the fat in their budgets is to cut the arts and music programs. A hundred public school students will be at Artexpo exhibiting self-portraits in the “I am an artist” program designed to show the public the necessity of arts education in the school system.

The fair also presents the opportunity to collect the works of emerging artists before their prices become astronomical.

As for fashion? In my opinion, Fashion Week inevitably proves — like the ad says — that women have come a long way. Unfortunately, that applies only to their choice of cigarettes, not their obeisance to dictatorial fashion gurus. It seems that every year women refuse to acknowledge that most of the hot fashions that might attract taste-challenged Hollywood starlets are totally unwearable for real women. It’s painful to watch the expressions on the near-anorexic models strutting down the runway in what can only be described as painfully uncomfortable costumes. Beautiful clothes should make the wearer feel glamorous, not self-conscious.

Thus, here’s my second exception to my antipathetic view of the world of fashion. Tuesday evening at Cipriani, the More Magazine/Wilhemina 40+ Model Search finals took place. Hosted by film star Angela Bassett, who expressed pride in her 48 years, the pageant featured 10 finalists. They were beautiful women with flesh on their bones — but, more then that, they wore their beauty and age with pride in their fit bodies. Three of the contestants were doctors, one was a CEO, another was a director of a nonprofit, and one was a grandmother of 56. All were accomplished women. The contestants’ lives will be detailed in the June issue of More, the editor of the magazine, Peggy Northrop, said.

The women bounced down the runway, grinning and thoroughly enjoying wearing the beautiful clothes by Carmen Marc Valvo, one of the few designers to create fashion for the real women who buy haute couture. In fact, his designs lent so much to the exuberance of the crowd that after the show was over, soap opera star Kassie DePaiva of “One Life to Live” expressed interest in Mr. Valvo’s designs for her show. As a woman older than 40, Ms. DePaiva said she found his designs elegant, wearable, and classic, yet original. Who could argue with that?

That both of these industries are flourishing regardless of anyone’s approval can mean only one thing: Our economy is just fine, Mr. Greenspan.