Roaring Camp, nestled up in the Santa Cruz Mountains off Graham Hill Road, is a wonderful place to paint or just enjoy the quaint atmosphere of a 19th century village. The park give train rides through the Redwoods so you have trains and old equipment by old tracks.
My subject for this outing was a caboose lying dormant with the dark redwoods' of Henry Cowell Redwood State Park in the background. Anyway, this all got me thinking about the symbolism of a caboose. It's the ending piece on a train that is coming or going away.
In art it's rather hard to know when to end your piece. It might help you if you remember that after the flare or the orange and the charm of it's shape has passed, you must let the caboose go. Think of your work like a caboose and let go of your piece when you sense the charm and vividness are diminishing. Learning to do this just at the right time is a skill. Just like a caboose traveling down the track over and over again, it gets easier and easier to say goodbye. February is a month of letting go. We let go of winter to get ready for spring. The next time you get to see a train, remember about the symbolism in the caboose and let it inform your own art.