How to Paint Abstracts from a Photo

Using a Reference Photo as a Starting Point for Abstracts

Reference photos can provide a great starting point for abstract art.

Image: © 2006 Marion Boddy-Evans. Licensed to About.com, Inc.

Some people paint abstracts entirely from their imaginations, but I find it essential to have something 'real' as the starting point. Something that gives me a direction to start working in, to kickstart my imagination.

This photo is one from my collection of abstract painting ideas (see larger photo). It's nothing fancy as far as photos go, merely two daisies, photographed from below against a blue sky. But it was the shapes that grabbed my attention.

So where would I start for a painting? With the negative space...

• Using a Reference Photo as a Starting Point for Abstracts
• Look at the Negative Space for an Abstract
• Shapes and Patterns from Negative Space
• Filling Negative Space Shapes With Color
• Another Way to Start at an Abstract: Follow the Contours of the Shapes
• Don't Forget Tone (Lights and Darks)
• Another Way to Start an Abstract: Look at the Lines
• Repeat with Other Colors
• Keep Going and Build On What Went Before
• The Final Painting, with the Power of the Dark