The main character of the story, Thurber, a member of the Providence Art Society, narrates about his acquaintance with the eccentric painter, Richard Upton Pickman. He is the only one among his acquaintances who has not abandoned the peculiar artist. One day, Pickman invites him to his studio to show paintings that he dared not present to the rest of the society. Thurber not only becomes familiar with the paintings but also their terrifying models.