The Art of Seeing: How to Look at Abstract Art Like a Collector

By Simon Kenny | 10 min read

How to look at abstract art is a skill any aspiring collector can learn. There are various methods one can use to develop their collector’s eye, and in this article, I offer you my favourite three-step approach to do so. This practice has been refined through decades of creating and curating abstract paintings and will guide you from the initial emotional response when your eyes first greet the canvas, to the analytical exploration and personal meaning-making generated by this process. Practised regularly, slow looking transforms casual gallery visits into deeply rewarding experiences that foster genuine collector confidence.

Thank you for coming back. In Part 1, we celebrated the embryonic moment when you transition from admiring art, to imagining a life with it. Starting your collection is the beginning of this journey, but it is the art of slow looking that will ensure your portfolio is vibrant, enticing to a wider audience, and most of all, echoes who you are as a collector. The ability to truly see will be the most important tool in your repertoire.

Learning how to truly look at abstract art requires a different modus operandi. In our fast-paced digital culture, we consume visual information in milliseconds. We glance, we watch, we scroll on. But engaging with a painting in a way that allows it to speak to you requires patience, curiosity, and a willingness to slow down. After decades as both an artist who lives inside the creative process and someone who enjoys observing how people interact with art every day, I can tell you that the most confident and fulfilled collectors are not necessarily the wealthiest. They are the ones who observe, ruminate and reflect this back onto their collection.

This is not a gift you need to be born with. It is a practicable skill, and the process of strengthening it is rewarding, offering you new ways of thinking and connecting to art, and to yourself. I want to share a simple, yet profound three-step process you can use the next time you find yourself standing before a painting, whether in a hushed gallery or viewing a high-resolution image online.

Why Slow Looking Changes Everything

Recent research in neuro-aesthetics has confirmed what artists have experienced for centuries: the longer you spend with a work of art, the more your brain responds to it. A 2014 meta-analysis published in the journal Brain and Cognition, examined fifteen separate fMRI studies and found that viewing paintings activates not only the visual cortex, but also the anterior insula, a key centre for emotional experience. The posterior cingulate cortex also activates a part of the brain’s default mode network linked to self-reflection and memory. Have you ever felt a connection to abstract art that defied words? It’s likely that the posterior cingulate cortex was responsible.

Claim: Viewing paintings activates the anterior insula (emotion) and the posterior cingulate cortex (self-reflection and memory) according to a meta-analysis of 15 fMRI studies.
Source: Veen, V. et al., “Neural correlates of viewing paintings,” Brain and Cognition, 2014, pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24704947/ (accessed March 2026).

In practical terms, this all means that when you slow down with a painting, you are not just “looking harder.” You are activating a cascade of neural processes connecting vision, emotion, and personal meaning. The Tate gallery has championed this approach through their dedicated slow-looking programme, encouraging visitors to spend ten minutes or more with a single artwork rather than rushing through entire exhibitions.

Claim: Tate recommends spending 10 minutes or more with a single artwork, using a structured approach of observation, emotional awareness, and reflection.
Source: Tate, “A Guide to Slow Looking,” tate.org.uk/art/guide-slow-looking (accessed March 2026).

So how do we move beyond a casual glance to genuine engagement? I propose a three-step process that draws on my experience as a practising artist and on the principles championed by major institutions worldwide.

Step 1: Feel the Emotional Hit

Before you do anything else, before you analyse, before you judge, before you even read the title on the wall label, I want you to simply stand back and let the painting happen to you. Take a breath, pause, and feel.

What is the immediate emotional weather of the piece? Does it feel calm, quiet, and serene, like the stillness of a misty morning? Or does it feel turbulent, chaotic, and energetic, like a brewing storm? Does it radiate warmth, optimism, and joy, or is there an undercurrent of melancholy and deep introspection?

Your only task in this first step is to notice that feeling without judgement. This is your gut reaction, your emotional north star, and it is the most authentic data you will receive. My work is often inspired by the powerful forces of nature I experience on the Kent coast, or the vast, silent mysteries of the cosmos. That initial feeling you get is the beginning of a silent conversation between you and the piece. Trust it, it is your truth.

Step 2: Become a Curious Detective, How to Look at Abstract Art Analytically

Once you have established your emotional bearing, it is time to move closer and let your curiosity guide your eyes around the canvas. This is the analytical stage, where you gather clues and ask questions. Think of it as three separate enquiries.

Composition and Movement

Let your eyes roam freely across the surface. Where do they go first? Is there a clear focal point that grabs your attention, and where do your eyes move from there? Does the composition feel balanced and stable, or is it dynamic, off-kilter, and full of tension? In my lyrical abstract works, I often use sweeping, gestural lines to create a powerful sense of movement that guides your eye on a dance across the entire surface of the canvas.

Colour and Light

Now focus specifically on colour. Are the colours harmonious and complementary, or are they deliberately clashing and dissonant? Are they vibrant and saturated, or muted and earthy? Pay close attention to how different colours interact with each other at their edges. Then consider the light. Is there a clear light source represented, or does the light seem to emanate from within the painting itself? I am fascinated by capturing a sense of inner light. I often build up dozens of thin, transparent glazes to create a luminosity that radiates from the deepest layers of the canvas.

Texture and Surface

This is a vital step, and one often missed when we only view art on a screen. If you have the chance to see a piece in person, get close enough to appreciate its physical surface. Is the paint applied in thick, sculptural strokes, a technique known as impasto? Or is it thin, flat, and smooth? Can you see the individual marks of the brush, or the sharp scrape of a palette knife?

The texture of a painting is its unique handwriting. It is a direct, physical record of its own creation. It tells you about the energy, the speed, and the force of the artist’s hand. It is the most intimate connection you can have with the creative process behind the work.

Guided Exploration: What to Look for in an Abstract Painting

Element	Guiding Questions
Composition	Where does your eye land first? Does the arrangement feel balanced or deliberately unsettled? Is there a sense of direction or movement?
Colour	Are the colours warm or cool? Harmonious or clashing? Do they suggest a mood or atmosphere? How do they interact at their edges?
Light	Does the light seem to come from outside the painting or from within? Are there areas of brightness that draw you in?
Texture	Is the surface rough or smooth? Can you see evidence of the brush, knife, or hand? What does the texture suggest about how the piece was made?
Scale	How does the physical size of the work affect your experience? Does it surround and immerse you, or invite you to lean in close?
Negative Space	Are there areas of stillness or emptiness? How do these spaces interact with the more active passages?

Step 3: Make the Personal Connection

Now that you understand the painting, step back again. This is the final and most transformative part of the process. This is where you connect the artwork to your own life.

What does the painting remind you of? Does the movement recall a piece of music you love? Do the colours evoke a memory from childhood? Does it feel like a dream you once had, or a powerful feeling you have experienced but never been able to put into words? This is where the alchemy happens. The painting ceases to be an object made by someone else and becomes a mirror reflecting something uniquely yours.

As an artist fascinated by psychology, this is the most meaningful part of the artistic journey for me. The artwork becomes a catalyst for your own introspection and self-discovery. With my pieces, it is the story behind the work, my personal narrative of resilience and my fascination with our place in the universe, for example, that are the starting point. But it is your personal connection, your story, that give any of my artworks its ultimate, lifelong value.

The Neuroscience Behind Art Viewing

The three-step method is not simply intuitive wisdom. Science increasingly supports the idea that slow, structured art viewing has measurable benefits for the brain. A landmark 2014 study published in PLOS One by Bolwerk and colleagues used fMRI scans to demonstrate that thoroughly engaging with visual art enhances functional connectivity in the brain, particularly in regions associated with psychological resilience.

Claim: Visual art engagement enhanced functional brain connectivity in the posterior cingulate cortex, a region linked to psychological resilience, in a controlled fMRI study of 28 adults.
Source: Bolwerk, A. et al., “How Art Changes Your Brain,” PLOS One, 2014, journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0101035 (accessed March 2026).

Researchers at the Penn Center for Neuroaesthetics have taken this further, demonstrating that slow looking guided through three stages, sensory processing, emotional evaluation, and meaning-making, invites stronger feelings of fascination and enjoyment compared to a casual viewing experience. The parallels with the three-step method I have described are clear.

Claim: Slow looking guided through sensory, emotional, and meaning-making stages increased viewer experiences of rapture and edification compared with unstructured free viewing.
Source: Penn Center for Neuroaesthetics, slow-looking study, neuroaesthetics.med.upenn.edu (accessed March 2026).

What this means for you as an aspiring collector is significant. Every time you practise this method, you are not only deepening your appreciation of art, but you are also training your brain to process beauty, emotion, and meaning more effectively. Collecting art becomes more than a pursuit of beautiful objects, and extends to a practice that enriches your cognitive function and emotional wellbeing.

Putting the Three-Step Method into Practice

Ready to try it? Here is how to begin this week.

The Five-Minute Challenge

Visit a local gallery or choose one painting from my online portfolio. Set a timer for five minutes and give it your undivided attention. Work through each step in order.

Minutes one and two: Feel. Stand back and register your emotional response. Let the painting wash over you without trying to understand or explain it.

Minutes three and four: Explore. Move closer. Investigate composition, colour, light, and texture using the guiding questions in the table above.

Minute five: Reflect. Step back and ask yourself what the painting reminds you of, what it makes you feel, and what personal story it connects to.

Tips for Viewing Art Online

Not every viewing experience happens in a gallery. When viewing art on screen, use the highest resolution available and view it on the largest screen you can. Zoom into details to explore texture and brushwork. Remove distractions: close other tabs, silence your phone. The principles of slow looking apply wherever you encounter art.

Frequently Asked Questions: How to Look at Abstract Art

How long should I spend looking at an abstract painting?

Start with five minutes per painting. The Tate gallery recommends ten minutes or more for deeper engagement. Even brief, focused attention transforms your viewing experience compared with a casual glance.

What if I do not understand the meaning behind an abstract painting?

Abstract art does not require a singular, correct interpretation. Your emotional response is valid and valuable. The three-step method helps you build your own personal meaning without needing art history knowledge.

Can I practise slow looking with art on a screen?

Yes. Use the highest resolution available, view on a large screen, and zoom into details. While in-person viewing reveals texture, the emotional and analytical steps work equally well online.

How does learning to look at art help me as a collector?

It builds the confidence to trust your taste, articulate why a piece moves you, and make acquisitions you will cherish for life rather than following trends or hype.

Is abstract art harder to appreciate than representational art?

No, it is not harder, simply different. Without recognisable subjects, your connection is purely emotional and sensory. Many collectors find this directness more rewarding once they develop the skill of looking.

Your Turn: Try the Three-Step Method This Week

I challenge you to try this process with one painting this week. Visit a local gallery or pick a piece from my online portfolio. Set your timer for five minutes and give the painting your full attention. What did you discover in those five minutes that you missed in the first ten seconds? Please share your experience in the comments below.

Next Steps: See the Art for Yourself

Now that you have a method, put it to work. Explore my gallery of original abstract paintings and limited-edition prints. Let yourself slow down. See what speaks to you. That quiet conversation between you and a painting is where every great collection begins.