Skin

Drioli’s emotional state and mental health are mentioned several times throughout the story. How are his emotions driven by physical needs and by the responses of others? How does memory affect his sense of stability and of self?

The color yellow appears multiple times in the story. What does this color symbolize, and does the meaning change throughout the text?

Explore the cultural and historical role of tattooing in the story and within its cultural era.

Drioli is asked to leave the art gallery because of his appearance, yet he observes Chaim Soutine’s art through the window. Discuss the story’s treatment of access to art.

By the end of the story, there is debate about the cost of Soutine’s artwork on Drioli’s back. How is the value of art determined, and what are the roles of the artist and the market in this process?

How does the story present women in Drioli’s negotiation with the stranger at the gallery? What does this suggest about the era’s understanding of gender roles?

The bust of Drioli’s wife, Josie, is a product of the male gaze—Soutine has an obvious attraction to her, so much so that he suggests the painting be a nude. In the end, the stranger suggests that Drioli walk along the beach, accepting the guests’ gaze as they appreciate the art on his back. How does this connect to ideas of objectification and understanding of the body as a private or public space?

The painting in the gallery window is of a landscape—“a clump of trees leaning madly over to one side as if blown by a tremendous wind, the sky swirling and twisting all around” (1). What does this symbolize? Compare Soutine’s artistic choices in this painting with those made in creating the portrait of Josie on Drioli’s back.