"Modern art is what happens when painters stop looking at girls and persuade themselves that they have a better idea."
- John Ciardi

"Abstract art?
A product of the untalented,
sold by the unprincipled to
the utterly bewildered."
- Al Capp

At one point, I too considered that abstract art was a bit of a bow out. During the coarse of time, learning how to paint, draw, and render "what is" an artist labors over details and ponders proportion and many such concrete things. I do see how this manifests.
As my thought process has seemed to have always been a bit more on the abstract side of things and with the introduction of lucid dreaming, which increased my obsessions with the subconscious/consciousness itself and abstract from within. I began to see modern art, impressionism Synthetic cubism/cubism and pure abstract art as something entirely different.
The two above quotes are from the vantage point of two obtuse people that are either oblivious, ignorant or scared to even imagine. I would guess that if they have pictures, if any, pictures that must have a label on them. It is that similar to photograph. For heaven forbid they try to explore the more unknown regions of our mind.
They are either ignorant or cowards!