Chapter 7, Part 1 Summary

The moment they are back in Paris, Claude hits the streets in his old habits leaving Christine to settle into the studio they have rented. Claude's first visit is to Mahoudeau who is the epitome of the starving artist, enduring the cold in his studio and taking what few commissions he can get. Interestingly he says that there is not much of a market for angels and saints any longer. His one bit of artistic work is called Woman Bathing, a statue of a nude woman dipping her toes in to test the water. Claude's initial comment is that she is pretty good in spite of her hefty thighs, but he must reserve comment until she is finished. Chaîne is still living there with Mahoudeau, though the two of them are not speaking to each other over their sharing of...