Orange Wedges With Small Watching Faces Guna Mola

Orange Wedges With Small Watching Faces Mola is a hand sewn textile by a Guna (Kuna) artisan in Panama. Every wedge holds a small triangle of color marked with two dots and a short line, so the whole panel seems to be quietly watching you. It starts as pure geometry and slowly turns into company. At 16 inches wide and 11.5 inches high it is a bold graphic piece for a frame or a cushion front. Put it in a modern living room or an office where your clean lines need some warmth.

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: 16"
Height: 11.5"
SKU: PM2079T