Green Maze With Smiling Bloom On Orange Mola

A bold green labyrinth loops across a bright tangerine ground, and tucked at the top is a small round bloom with two eyes and a smile stitched into it. Spotted ovals in blue and red sit in the upper corners, and dark leaf shapes with fine hatch lines fill the sides. The panel is 16.5 inches wide and 11 inches high, a cheerful piece of graphic folk art. Every line is hand cut and stitched in reverse appliqué.

A mola is a hand stitched panel made by the Guna people of Panama, once known as the Kuna. Several layers of colored cotton are stacked, then cut down through one layer at a time so the colors underneath show through, and every raw edge is turned and stitched closed by hand. The technique is called reverse appliqué. Guna women have been refining it for generations, and the designs draw on the birds, fish, plants and geometric patterns of the islands and rainforest where they live.

TraderBrock has bought directly from Guna, Embera, Wounaan and Ngäbe artisans since 1991, and sales revenue goes back into those communities for education, medical care, tools and land. This panel came from Guna Yala, the San Blas islands off Panama's Caribbean coast. It is ready to frame, mount, or sew into a pillow or a quilt panel, and it can be hand washed. No two molas are ever alike, and small variations in size, stitching and color are normal in handmade textiles.

Width: 16.5"
Height: 11"
SKU: 22040270T