 At the start, a French painter is revealed trying to paint a restless model, his lover, who is sitting on an ornate cast-iron chair.The session is interrupted by the entry of the model's friends and his responsiveness to other female company underlines his restless spirit.A troupe of gypsies that he sees through the garret window, misunderstanding a gesture of his, now crowd in and a quarrel develops over possession of the chair between the model and a hot-blooded Carmen with whom the painter is flirting.