When you look at a pencil, what do you see? It may be straight and yellow, with a pink eraser at the top. In other words, it has parts. What makes a painting? Just like a pencil, a painting has parts. These parts are called plastic elements, because they are changed and molded by an artist in order to create a work of art. Look closely at the following series of paintings on view at the Barnes Foundation and see how plastic elements, such as color, line, light, shape, and space, make a painting.