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I have a friend who is an SOG artist, though he doesn't use the Forum. He "buys fame" by donating portraits to charity auctions, and the public TV fundraisers. The public TV thing gets him state-wide attention, since his name is mentioned on the promotional TV spots. His donated portraits are usually the smallest size, but people often opt to pay for an upgrade to a larger size. Once he's done this donation portrait, it often leads to a ripple effect, as people see this portrait and want one of their own. As far as I know, he doesn't do this very often, since he has a waiting list.
How much fame does a portrait artist seek? It seems that most of the pros have waiting lists... at least a couple commissions lined up at any given time. You can only paint so fast. Portrait artists don't have unsold paintings lying around. I've been to my friend's studio, and was surprised at the lack of artwork. It hadn't occurred to me until then, that portrait artists don't have the piles of paintings that other artists have. That's the advantage of portrait work.
I've been to other artists' studios and seen truckloads of art (not joking). They are sometimes nearly penniless, but have all this art that hasn't sold. They don't have the option of buying fame. They're more concerned with paying their rent.
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