Our web designer is also Paizo's web designer so I've had some... nuanced discussions around WotC and budgets, shall we say. I'm not going to say "they don't have the money;" I am going to say "they're not very good with money." I agree wholeheartedly that the investment in a monster manual or whatever should definitely lean heavily into the art. I'll go one further: a "deluxe edition" at twice the price with double the illustrations would probably sell very well. My broader point is "they should suck less" sidesteps the issue. We can both agree on it. However, if they're incapable of sucking less the problem doesn't go away.

I think my broader point is "when it's for something unimportant" is a moving target. For example, if you kick ass at hands, having the AI do your hands is definitely NOT "something unimportant." However if you kick ass at faces and suck at hands, AI hands could be defended as "something unimportant."

I don't have an answer here. I've just found that debates around artistry in the comics/gaming world tend to be a lot more knee-jerk than informed, and I think it's generally detrimental to the fandom.