Exercise 15 - Reading an Image

The content of this picture to me would be
- The Dragon,
- Two characters
- The cave
- The gold or treasure the dragon seems to be guarding
- The armour and sword to the left of the image and the sword/ spear next to the dragon
- A throne/ chair

To me this image could be part of a childrens book/ tale and it looks like two young explorers have entered the cave and discovered the sleeping dragon guarding the treasure.
The two young explorers have set out (one with a head lamp the other with a torch) to defeat the dragon and find the treasure. The piles of armour and weapon show how others have tried with no success to retrieve the treasure. The two characters are siblings and the girl is the most fearless and looks out for her younger brother ( who was very reluctant to embark on the adventure - hence why he's hiding behind his sister).
The colour palette is mainly hot which adds to the sense of fear and danger surrounding the dragon. The texture of the dragons scales and the shape/texture of the cave walls add to the tense atmosphere . Likewise the floor of the cave is textured to look like pebble dash or stones which I think also adds depth to the image and suggests the characters should tread carefully. The shadows are shown in cooler blue and grey tones which makes the reds and orange really prominent and adds depth to the image. Shadow underneath the characters remind us that the cave is dark and probably quite scary for the children.
I think the hot colour in the story is used on the dragon and to illuminate the cave as it adds to the danger factor of the expedition - in both the dragon and the sense of the dark cave which is only illuminated by torch light.
The most important visual elements of the image are the dragon - which is placed at the front of the image and is large in comparison to the smaller characters who are standing to the side of the composition. The yellow gold/ treasure would then follow in the hierarchy as it is being guarded by the dragon and the way the dragons tale curls around it suggests it is of importance. The light of the cave made by the torch leads the eye to the two characters and tells us the rest of the story as it illuminates them.