Reading an Image

I noted what I looked at in the order that I read the elements of the picture;

There is a large, sleeping, red dragon with some sort of orange/red background, is this supposed to be a cave? 2 figures have come upon the dragon, is it normal to be drawn to/look for, figures in a scene? Actually one figure is holding a torch which is the source of the orange area. The dragon is curled around a throne and has coins and treasure. There are discarded weapons, swords and shields - presumably from previous visitors who have either fled, or been eaten by the dragon. The image is about treasure hunters finding treasure guarded by a dragon.

The colour palette is predominantly red, and purple which fades to pale blue. There are touches of orangey yellow to create highlights and contrast with the red, and areas of green to complement the main colours. The whole image is bold and warm, but the green and darker purple areas feel cooler. There is some texture on the floor, walls and the treasure but most of the objects are smooth surfaced. The red dragon captures attention first because of the colour and because the wall (the other area of hot colour)  is clearly abstract and part of the background, then the reflected torchlight leads the eye to the cooler figures.

I don't think there is much tonal range in the image. The lighter tones to the left help to direct the eye away from the dragon to the small figures but the range is deliberately small to give a homogeneous picture.

The way that the image is composed and coloured encourages the reader to look at its components sequentially and then to read a story without words.