Find the best abstract painting lessons, classes, and instructors at HeyKiki and learn how to paint abstract art. In terms of its role in art history, painting, before the 19th century, was rooted in visual foundation; a real-life image was portrayed as a point of reference for artists to depict the world around them. Abstract painting moves beyond that: its contents are wholly independent of still images and the visual foundation in real-life is non-existent. Portraits are replaced by geometric shapes and, like any other abstract form, human influence is taken out of the equation. For training artists, abstract painting can be a good seminar to hone one's capabilities and teach the artistic eye to think outside of the box.