Reading an image

The aim of this exercise was to analyse the above image and answer guided questions about this image.

The key elements of this image are: a sleeping dragon; two children; treasure; and a cave. The image suggests that the two children have entered the cave, or dragons lair, they have found treasure, which maybe they want to take away, and they are trying not to wake the dragon who is potentially dangerous. This interpretation of the story being told in the image is heavily based on common themes in stories involving children and dragons.

In terms of colour palette, the image strongly contrasts hot reds, oranges and yellows, with cold blues and neutral greens. Tone is used to highlight areas of the image that are in bright torchlight, or else in the shadows. The dragon and the children are the characters in the story and thus important; they are bathed in light, highlighting their presence.