A Kuna Indian Folk Art Mola from San Blas Islands, Panama. Wall Decor, in Custom Frame & Mat. Hand stitched Textile Applique: Colorful Parrot & Hibiscus Flowers, plants 16" x 12" (DFM3)
Custom Framed and Matted Folk Art Mola Applique. Handstitched Textile by an American Indian Kuna Seamstress. Parrot Bird Motif Surrounded by Tropical Hibiscus Flowers. Professionally Stretched & Matted with an Acid-Free Mat. Framed Professionally in a Gold Frame & Under Glass.
FINISHED IN FRAME SIZE: 16" X 12"
ITEM: DFM3
Shown on the 1st photo
Collected in the San Blas Islands, Panama
If you are familiar with the cost of custom framing, you know this collector Mola is a bargain as a finished product, now ready to hang on the wall. We have chosen to stretch, mat and frame in a custom handpainted frame signed by the artist, meant to match & enhance this textile art’s uplifting beauty.
We recently closed our gallery of rare antique books and prints, original signed art, rare textile art and unique hand painted frames, some of the prints and art framed, some not, and all our artwork and antique prints will be listed here daily.
The Molas created by the Kuna Indians of the San Blas Islands near Panama, are world known for their minute hand sewn very close together stitches, so tiny on some that you can hardly see them. A Mola takes a long time to create because of its intricacy and minute detail. Some molas also have additional embroideries on top of the appliqué or reverse appliqué work. One cannot but admire the intense detail of the motifs and the richness of colors and embroideries of this unique disappearing art.
Colors are often more vibrant in real as the flash has a tendency of lightening up the tones.
Molas have many layers of colored fabrics sewn with very tiny and close stitches that are practically invisible. The subjects chosen are inspired by their tropical islands’ surroundings and have a profusion of details. These molas are collector molas, each in perfect condition and of the highest quality of workmanship that can be found.
We have many molas for sale with a great variety of motifs from geometric to jungle scenes, animals, birds, fish, insects, flowers, plants, still life, people, political, national & religious themes etc…
We search for and buy only the best of everything we carry, straight from the people and artists who created such masterpieces of reverse appliqué, appliqué & embroideries, over a period of months, in the remote islands off the coast of Panama.
Additional photos placed here show a variety of photos from our trips such as my husband distributing goods to the Indian community, village scenes, a mola being started, a Kuna woman wearing one, as the molas are part of the Cuna Indian traditional blouse and there is a panel in front and back per blouse. Panels can take months to create and are the pride of the maker and owner-wearer.
About the Kunas:
The Kuna Indians are the native people who live on small coral islands in the San Blas Archipelago along the Atlantic coast of Panama and Colombia. Molas are collected as folk art and can be viewed at some of the finest museums in the world like the Smithsonian in Washington DC. Kuna women are known for their colorful customs which consists of a patterned blue cotton wrapped skirt, red and yellow head scarf, arm and leg beads bands, gold nose rings and earrings and of course their mola blouse panels: The mola panels are intricately hand-stitched, often in a reverse appliqué technique, using several layers of differently colored cotton cloth. The mola may also be decorated with very fine embroidery accents. Mola is the Kuna Indian word for blouse, but the term mola has come to mean the elaborate minute embroidered panels that make up the front and back of a Kuna woman's blouse.
All our unusual handcrafted or rare items come with pages of research about provenance, authenticity, with history of the tribes and photos as well, and authenticity information concerning them. In the case of the molas, we will send you 5 lengthy documents with photos referring to everything you need to know about them, from their history to their spiritual meanings or messages, the traditions still embraced thru them, and the difficult task of creating them.
When shipping internationally, we group ship multiple purchases to save you money, and find the best rates available.
Our molas are in perfect shape, we pick them ourselves and one by one for their extreme detail, color combinations, subjects and beauty in the San Blas islands. We also have a few full blouses available.