Facing Toucans In Peach Outline On Black Mola

Two heavy billed toucans face each other across a black ground, every edge traced in soft peach so the birds seem to glow. Their wings break into bars of lime, magenta, orange and blue, and veined leaves sit below like fallen fruit. This is a big appliqué panel at 19 inches wide and 13 inches high, enough presence to anchor a wall on its own.

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: 19"
Height: 13"
SKU: 22022641T