Sand Dollars, Beauty in Life and Death

In painting the beauty of the dried sand dollars, bleached white by the sun, I got to thinking about what these silent little discs were like when alive.  I found a video online to share -

Live sand dollars are covered with velvet textured spines which help them move over the sand.  By the time they are found on the beach, these spines have been rubbed off and their skin has been bleached white.

Here are a few of my recent "Contemplations" paintings of sand dollars:

Sand Dollar on Slate Gray

oil on canvas, 8"x10"

Sand Dollars on Blue

oil on canvas, 14"x11"