
"There is no abstract art. You must always start with something. Afterward you can remove all traces of reality.
- Pablo Picasso"
I remember my first day at Maryland Institute College of Art. I was chatting with one of the painting students, and I asked about her work. "I do abstract," she said. Then offhandedly, she remarked that she couldn't paint anything that looked real.
I was surprised; seemed like a poor artist, to me; it lacked the fundamentals. But there she was, working on an MFA.