 An aspiring artist (Moira Kelly) runs from men as a result of an early life problem that has left her relationship with her father (Christopher Lloyd) strained. She decides to move into a convent where troubled women receive cheap lodging in exchange for work. She finds a dirty area in the basement where she paints a mural that deals with all of her psychological problems. While some find it gaudy, others such as the mother superior (Eileen Brennan) realizes its potential to save the convent which is to be closed. During all this the artist starts a relationship with a man (Dylan Walsh) who owns an art supply shop where she shop-lifts her supplies.