The first appearance of Basil is in his studio painting a portrait of “a young man of extraordinary personal beauty”. Despite Basil’s reluctance, he confesses this is Dorian Gray. The “personal beauty” of the portrait and overwhelming olfactory description creates a picturesque paradise in Basil’s studio, subverting expectation for any sin or immorality. It represents Basil precisely as he is always loving and optimistic, without any callousness, in his appreciation of beauty. Wilde describes the Basil’s studio filled with the “rich odour of roses”, making the reader sense the beauty all around them. The over exaggeration of Wilde’s emphasis of beauty, such as the “heavy scent” and “rich”, is to show the false imagery of the world Basil lives
