Spread Wing Bird With Yellow Beak On Green Mola

Spread Wing Bird With Yellow Beak On Green Mola is a hand sewn textile by a Guna (Kuna) artisan in Panama. A canary stretches both wings wide at the center, with a curved beak and fanned feathers, set off by four corner blocks of tight maze work. Its open pose has a feeling of release, like a window thrown open on the first warm afternoon of spring. It is 17 inches wide and 11 inches high, a good horizontal shape for a wall frame. Put it over your sofa, a bench in the entry or a long hall table.

Molas are built by stacking several layers of colored cotton, then cutting down through one layer at a time so the colors underneath show through, and turning every raw edge under and stitching it closed by hand. The technique is called reverse appliqué, and a good panel is judged by how fine the stitches are and how many layers deep the cutting goes. This one came from Guna Yala, the San Blas islands off Panama's Caribbean coast, where the designs draw on the birds, fish, plants and geometric patterns of the islands and rainforest. It is ready to frame, mount, or sew into a pillow or a quilt panel, and no two are ever alike.

Founded in 1991, TraderBrock celebrates the handcraft of Latin America's indigenous peoples. Every piece comes from Guna, Wounaan and Emberá artisans we know by name, and all profits are reinvested in their communities for education, tools and the teaching of ancestral techniques. Buying from TraderBrock helps keep their culture and their traditions alive.

Width: 17"
Height: 11"
SKU: 22040287T