Illustration by Mark Oliver
Image Source – OCA, Illustration 1, Key Steps in Illustration PDF

• What the image is about. What is it saying?

The image shows a sleeping dragon guarding treasure and a throne.
There are two characters to the left of the dragon – they appear to be in a cave (the dragon’s cave).

• Work out the narrative and identify the story.

The story appears to be that the two characters have ventured to get something back from the dragon – there is gold, a crown, a chalice and a throne. He’s also holding/wearing some jewellery .

One of the characters is reluctant and pointing towards the entrance of the cave – gesturing that he wants to leave. The other character however is ready to confront the dragon, she is pointing directly at the dragon which creates even more of a contrast between her and the character that wanted to leave. This definitely gives you an insight into what the characters are like, one seems more timid and worried and the other is headstrong and brave.

There are empty suits of armour and weapons on the floor – what I gathered from this is that knights had previously tried to confront or slay the dragon but were unsuccessful.

• Describe the palette and tonal range which has been used. Note if the colours are
hot or cold, whether the elements are detailed or textural, and where these
approaches are used.

 

The main colours used within this piece are Green, Blue, Purple, Red, Orange, Yellow although there are some small areas of black and white (but mainly just on the dragons horns). The contrasting areas of light and dark are almost a gradient, blending into each other – you can see more details in the area of light e.g. the pebbles on the ground and the roof of the cave. Both are more defined than the areas of darkness which is a very effective way of indicating shadow rather than just relying on areas of black (I mainly mention this as a note to self – experiment more with colour, especially in shadow).

• Is there any connection between hot colour and the importance of the element in
telling the story?

There are definitely areas of hot and cold. The main area of the bold red/orange is the dragon but there is also another area of hot colour behind the protagonists. I think it is the glow of the torch they are holding but the bold colours and area of high contrast draws the viewers eye directly towards the characters. The characters hair are also the same – warm colours – this frames their faces and immediately draws the eye towards their facial expressions.

This has been a really effective exercise for me because I am really eager to learn more about telling a story through illustration – I want to know more about how to portray more meaning through an illustration. This has been interesting as I have realised that it is more than just the initial drawing that matters – the choice of colours in this piece is fundamental as it really draws your eye to the key elements that build the story. I will refer back to these questions when looking at story book illustrations again as I feel like I have noticed things that I wouldn’t usually!