My Dissenting opinion

"I now give you my word of honor," he went on, "that the picture your city owns shows everything about life which truly matters, with nothing left out. It is a picture of the awareness of every animal. It is the immaterial core of every animal—the 'I am' to which all messages are sent.. It is all that is alive in any of us—in a mouse, in a deer, in a cocktail waitress. It is unwavering and pure, no matter what preposterous adventure may befall us. A sacred picture of Saint Anthony alone is one vertical, unwavering band of light. If a cockroach were ear him, or a cocktail waitress, the picture would show two such bands of light. Our awareness is all that is alive and maybe sacred in any of us. Everything else about us is dead machinery."

This is the passage I said should be included with the art piece for Mr. Lade, alongside the one you posted earlier, Max. There is also another paragraph after it which should maybe be included as well, but this is the important part.

And, Max, I still don't belive that this passage is meant simply to show how modern artists trick people, or whatever you said. I believe it is sincere, as evidenced by the start of the chapter immediately following this speech, which begins with the narrator saying "While my life was being renewed by [the artist] Rabo Karabeikan…"

Also, if you read about his work, it is obvious that Karabeikan is based on real-life minimalist artist Barnett Newman, who is covered in the last chapter of the art history book.