Saying "I want to throw money at it" is like taking a shortcut and cheating yourself out of the journey.
If your appreciation is somehow connected with the ownership, then of course it is consumerism. If you think supporting someone talented is better justified by you getting something out of it, you are using that as a narcissistic rationalization for what you consume.
To me, what you and I are discussing (buying a custom-built computer at small scale) is more like the artisan culture of Japan, where they are very efficient, and appreciate fine things that last a long time.
Anyways, I think you and I are probably more similar in our beliefs about the waste of consumerism than you might think.
Edit: Also, art is certainly somewhat wasteful (who needs a crystal flute!?), but at small scale I think art is necessary to help make the world a place where humans aren't just big ants, working constantly for an unattainable goal.
There is an old saying: "the only difference between boys and men is in the price of their toys". It's kind sad if you think about it, and sadder still that some people treat this as a virtue.
The true waste from consumerism isn't just from the individuals who live in that world, but from the corporate and social behemoths that push the rampant consumption of goods that aren't made by individuals with care, but by machines who have been programmed to do so, whether electromechanical (robots) or biological (factory workers). We should all strive to support individuals and small businesses over corpos.