Skin (short story)

"Skin" is a macabre short story written by author Roald Dahl. It features in 'A Roald Dahl Selection', a compilation of several short stories by Dahl that has been edited by Roy Blatchford.

Plot summary

A former tattoo parlor owner, Drioli, remembers when he knew a now-famous artist named Soutine when he sees one of his paintings in an art gallery. Thirty years ago, Soutine had been in love with Drioli's wife Josie, and Drioli asked Soutine to paint a picture on Drioli's back and then tattoo over it. Josie posed for it, and Drioli still has the tattoo on his back.

Drioli enters the art gallery, and shows the crowd his incredible tattoo. Several people make bids for it, and two men give him a choice: one says he will pay for a skin-grafting operation on his back (and the man will consequently pay for the tattoo) while the other asks him to come to the Bristol Hotel in Cannes, and simply exhibit his back to the customers, similar to a model. Drioli decides to come with the latter, and leaves the gallery.

Later, a "heavily varnished" painting of the same subject is on sale in Buenos Aires. The Narrator then says that he truly hopes Drioli is now comfortable and rich, for there is no Bristol hotel in Cannes. The implication is that Drioli has been killed to obtain the art on his back. However, there is no direct sentence stating this and therefore no one truly knows what became of Drioli.