Telling your spectators it's art doesn't make it so.
If you want people to see your magic as art, perform it like it's art. That's it.
Darwin Ortiz probably has the best take on this subject I've ever read in his book,
Designing Miracles. Basically, his philosophy is magicians waste way too much time trying to justify magic as an artform. Instead, one would do better to study magic like a craft and let it develop and be perceived at the level of an artform on its own by your spectators. Let them decide whether it's art or not based on how you present it.
Not everyone is always going to think there's something artistic to what you're doing. Sometimes what you're doing is just going to be perceived as a craft. And that's ok. So just treat your magic like an art and hope that it shines through when you perform. That's really all you can do to really help the cause because, aside from magicians, nobody really cares if magic is seen as an artform or a collection of gags, cons, jokes, and tricks.
Also, be more selective with what you choose to perform. You may love an effect, but does it
actually play as a real mystery? There are loads of effects I absolutely adore but I refuse to perform them because, in the end, they don't play like
real magic. Eugene Burger has said his repertoire right now consists of 29 effects, and that if he could get it down to 20 he thinks he would really be a star. Think about what he's saying with that. And be conscious of how you're presenting your effects. Is the comedy overshadowing the magic? Is the magic more about getting a laugh or a scream or are you really doing your absolute best to affect someone on a deeper emotional level with your magic? Is there an emotional hook to your effect? Because, if not, forget about it being seen as art.
Robert Houdin said it best: "The magician should be an actor playing the role of a magician." Does everything you do--your dress, patter, presentation, effect selection, invisibility of sleights, etc.--further the belief in your role as a magician? If not, what might be getting in your way of achieving belief in your role with your audience? Are you really striving to make your acting role artful in the same sense that a great silver screen, Oscar winning performance is, or (to extend the metaphor) are you just making a flashy entertainment flick?
There are quite a few good examples of magic effects that plays like art pieces: Copperfield's Snowstorm, Teller's Shadow Rose, etc.. But, of course, they're debatable, so I'm going to go with this one because, whether you like the effect or not, the way it affects the one person it was performed for is transparent. So forget whether you like this effect or not. Think about how Blaine presents this and how the magic emotionally impacts his spectator. What this guy saw wasn't flashy eyecandy, it was art. Listen to what he says afterwards. Check it out:
The Tattoo.