Two Round Dancers On A Chartreuse Maze Mola

Two Round Dancers On A Chartreuse Maze Mola is a hand sewn textile panel made by the Guna people of Panama, known for generations as the Kuna. Two round bodied figures lean toward each other in mid step with blue shoes and wide eyes, their bodies filled with tiny chain rows, and a labyrinth running edge to edge behind them. The music is not included but you can hear it anyway. At 17 inches wide and 13 inches high it hangs well as a piece of folk art and frames without fuss. Right in a dining room, a stairwell, or a room where people dance.

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: 13"
SKU: 22040622T