In a late nineteenth century London studio, aspiring artist Basil Hallward puts the finishing touches on a portrait of his handsome young friend Dorian Gray. Dorian looks at the painting and wishes that the portrait might grow old while he remains forever young. As Dorian spends his life pursuing fresh experiences and new sensations, his looks do not change. However, the portrait, secretly hidden in the attic of Gray's residence—and with which he has grown increasingly obsessed—does. More and more, as Dorian struggles to hide his true identity, the portrait reveals his progressive path to dissolution.