The valuation of artwork is a fundamental issue in cultural economics. This study examines the impact of visual elements on a painting’s price. Several characteristics are evaluated such as its intricacy, points of interest, segmentation-based features, and local color features. The study also employs theories by Itten and Kandinsky, and applies mixed-effects models to assess how these characteristics impact the painting’s price. The influence of color is examined in the context of abstractionism, a highly complex art style, where the selection of color is crucial. Itten’s theory, the most acclaimed color theory in the art world, is used as a basis for this analysis since it has spawned various sub-theories and is the basis for teaching artists. A unique dataset of 3,885 paintings from Christie’s and Sotheby’s is used, and it is found that Itten’s color harmony has a low predicting power, color complexity metrics are inconsequential, and color diversity is a better predictor of the price of abstract art.