Molas are simple yoke-type blouses richly decorated by intricate needlework. Mola can mean the blouse that is daily wear for Kuna (sometimes spelled Cuna) women but most often refers to its front or back panel. They have been made for about a century.

What is mola art known for?

The mola originated with the tradition of Kuna women painting their bodies with geometric designs, using available natural colors; in later years these same designs were woven in cotton, and later still, sewn using cloth bought from the European settlers of Panamá.

Where does mola art come from?

Molas are a brightly colored textile art created by the Kuna tribe from the San Blas Blas region of Panama. Mola means cloth or clothing in the Kuna language. These panels of stacked cloth are used to make women’s blouses. Girls learn to make these at an early age and can spend up to 100 hours making one Mola!

What is a mola embroidery?

mola, type of embroidered woman’s outer garment, worn as part of the blouse by the Kuna Indians of the San Blas Archipelago, off the eastern coast of Panama. The mola’s brightly coloured designs, done in reverse appliqué technique, traditionally are abstract, often based on the patterns of brain coral.

What is the main concept of a mola?

Mola motives have their origin in body painting like they are still used by many indigenous groups of Latin America. A main concept in Molas is to leave as little unworked space as possible as the Kunas believe that evil spirits can settle in the free spaces.

How do you make molas?

To make a mola, you are essentially layering several pieces of fabric, and then cutting away the top fabric and hand reverse appliqueing it, one layer at a time, to the fabric beneath, to create a multi-dimensional, multi-layered piece.

What do molas look like?

Molas are simple yoke-type blouses richly decorated by intricate needlework. Mola can mean the blouse that is daily wear for Guna (previously spelled Kuna or Cuna) women but most often refers to its front or back panel. They have been made for about a century.

What 5 things determine the quality of a mola?

The quality of a mola is determined by such factors as: number of layers; fineness of stitching; evenness and width of cutouts; addition of details such as zigzag borders, lattice-work or embroidery; general artistic merit of the design and color combination.

What kind of art are molas?

Molas, a traditional textile craft, are made from layers of colored fabric that are stitched and cut using applique techniques to create patterns and pictures. They originated in Panama, with the women of the Kuna tribe in the San Blas islands.

What is the purpose of selling molas?

The traditional purpose of molas was to decorate functional items of clothing. Today, the Kuna sell molas to tourists as a way to earn money.

What kind of colors are used in molas?

Each mola consists of two to seven layers of cotton cloth in the dominant colors of red, black, and orange.