What Makes a Good Abstract Painting?

I cannot remember when I last learned so much in eight minutes - a deeply rewarding experience - very many thanks.

😁🖌️I painted two abstracts in my journal and was listening to a wonderful CD of orchestra and a very upbeat violinist my mother sent me they were colorful and very gestural. When my friend saw them ...she said , "I see music." I turned the pages and showed her they were named Music #1 and Music #2. It was really amazing to me that she saw it!

This past weekend, I did an abstract landscape that is, to me, the best I have ever done. Only my husband "got it"... and I did not care. I GOT IT!!! And I loved the play in it, as well as the outcome.

The most important thing that makes a good abstract painting is that it induces emotion!

Oh my goodness I needed to hear this. I have been practicing for years and have never liked any of my paintings. I've almost given up many times, but I always come back to it. Thank you so much!

Thank you so much. I do agree that there are lots of "easy abstract" videos on Youtube and those are misleading and give poor results. I was happy to learn from this video, that i am not the only one being frustrated after hours spent on a canva and ending up with a "muddy mess".

It IS difficult...and I thought I was doing it wrong because it is hard...this has liberated me!

I have realized that I am not painting any particular landscape, but my response to it. It is the response that is the purpose, the language and the passion. Thank you Louise for articulating the artists paint of view. That added a fuller understanding and confirmation

Thank you so much for what you said. You said it with great heart and clarity, and you made excellent points. It's generous of you to share these deep, important thoughts with your fellow artists.

‘It’s the emotional resonance that sells the work” - 👍 that hit me in the ❤️ thank you and God bless.

I absolutely love your perspective. Whenever I get stuck, I watch some of your videos and they really help me get back on track.

I’m a graphic artist and have taken Nick’s free workshop. 100%, his generous teaching can be a breakthrough for artists of any medium and genre.

This is incredibly helpful! I've been really struggling this past month trying to figure out why I feel so stuck with my work. You hit the nail on the head!

This is so helpful, Louise! Thank you! You are like a mind reader! Exactly what I needed right now. As well as your compare and despair message. My week will be better because of your help. You rock! 👍🎨💜

I've been struggling in my art due to the pressures of others. I feel like I have to do something good (on the eyes of others). That has made me not enjoy doing art. I'm an illustrator, but I have always found abstract art to be beautiful. I want to express myself, not to be good enough. Thanks for the video!

Thank you Louise for your simple explanation of abstract art. I always thought I'm weird and a little mad because the "traditional" art did not really attract me however I admire their work and as an newby I copy many photos/artworks but it's not feeling true to myself, I feel lonely. My only painting I really love is the one I did when I was emotionally angry. And it seems to me I'm the only one who loves it but it's okay.

A truly beautiful and helpful video. Having listened to many artists try to explain their process and intention over the last 50 years, your presentation is extremely down-to-earth and insightful — a tricky thing to achieve in my opinion because it's about the process of engaging deep levels of abstraction within the artist in order to render an abstract image in a physical form, a painting. You hit all the major points in a very clear way. I love your emphasis on the fundamental skills that are always needed: use of color, value, and composition. Well done!

It's amazing how things fall into place. I woke up today with the urge to paint but I was utterly like lost and didn't know why or what I wanted to paint. And over breakfast this video came up randomly while I was searching for some insight and perspective. Best 8 minutes of my morning. Thank you for this treasure of knowledge.

Brilliant. So glad I found you today... I left my art room disappointed.. and bam, here you are. Thank you.

I was a good kid in school, but the teacher's didn't really know what to do with me, I was dyslexic and they didn't understand why I wasn't learning. I would physically get sick because of the stress, and the humiliation I suffered from on a daily basis. I just got into art in 2020 ,thank u sweet baby Jesus! Now I have YouTube, I am stumbling through this , I'm on disability so getting classes are out of the question, sadly USA has taken the arts out of school , I really think it's going to show that we are so far behind the rest of the world. I hope to learn more from you. I want u to know that you are in demand over here. We need an opportunity for a stress management with our sad state of our government, hopefully we will be back in the arts soon.. thank you for letting me explain why you are in such a desperate demand for so many people on the spectrum, any kind of learning difficulties, stress relief ,