Mola Applique Folk Art Unique Quilted Panel Kuna Harvesting fruit 18X13\" Huge 33


Mola Applique Folk Art Unique Quilted Panel Kuna Harvesting fruit 18X13\

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Mola Applique Folk Art Unique Quilted Panel Kuna Harvesting fruit 18X13\" Huge 33:
$69.99


You are buying the intricate detailed vintage mola in the first andthird photo, highly collectable & authentic folk art panel once created bya talented Kuna Indian. Very large. 18\" x 13 1/4\", a mola this largecan take twice as long to complete as a regular size mola.

The people with lighter skin on each side of the Kuna lady, are albinos, as therearequite a fewalbinos among the Kunas because of in-breeding, and they get special attention as if they were semi-gods. They often end up with positions of power on each island.

A traditional hand sewn very detailed mola with a geometricbackground of traditional tiny time consuming triangles and \"V\" \'sattesting to the capability of a great mola maker among other things.

A unique subject of 2 men and 1 woman in traditional costumeharvesting fruit and eating it too. Collecting baskets are on the ground. Womanis wearing the local scarf and with the usual dress code, mola blouse and wrap-aroundfabric skirt. Lots of detailed embroideries add to the richness of this molawith their perfect minute motifs.

Extraordinary colors combination, so vivid too,

Time consuming to create completely by hand.

collected in Ustupu Island, San Blas, Panama. Item 33A in the people category.

Molas are wonderful traditional folk art hand stitched fabricpanels that the Kuna women, from Indian tribes living in the remote San Blasislands off the coast of Panama, wear on the front and back of their blouses.They are masterpieces of time consuming intricate textile art, each created by anartistic accomplished seamstress with imagination, technique, originality andtalent and each is unique: they are delicately and minutely hand sewnrecreating either an abstract geometric motif reminiscent of body tattoos fromtheir past, the brain coral thatsurrounds the islands, or inspired by kuna history, religion, shamanism ordaily life and by what surrounds the makers such as nature, birds, animals,etc… and they are highly collectable inthe world or textiles and visual arts. We sell them to museums and collectors allover the world.

Each of our molas was removed from a blouse after we purchased itand is an original authentic fabric panel.

The most authentic, original, the purest andtruest of all molas ever created were the geometrics ones and a must for anyserious collection, harder and harder to locate today because most were createdfrom the 1940’s to the 1970’s, they are abstract masterpieces of hand stitched applique.We pride ourselves in collecting direct, from village to village of the SanBlas Islands, only the most outstanding, detailed, handmade and colorful panelswe can find and the most traditional and oldest ones as well which are gettingharder and harder to find.

We collect our molas one by one, in the field, to insurethat we get the best work, rendition, originality, art and authenticity, withthe best color combinations available in each island. My site was justhacked by someone that took over my listings and replaced them by his own, as aresult, my entire inventory was compromised and it will take months to relistwhat I have lost after finding out what it was in the first place, so if you donot see a mola you were watching, let us know so we can post it again rightaway. I cannot afford the time to rewrite my texts in full so if you have anyquestions or want to get our research on molas before purchasing, let us know.

Kunas create motifs on panels, in reverse applique andapplique, with fabrics of different colors, panels that they will later wearwith a great deal of pride as imagination, taste, technique and color combiningabilities affects each creation, which is often enhanced by minute and perfectlyrendered embroideries, the finished product earning respect and status for the maker. Creating a detailedmola, on average, takes 1 month but it can take longer according to theintensity of the motifs, the difficulty of the pattern, the detail involved, and the proximity of the stitches. We only buy the best work that can be foundon the premises and remove the molas ourselves from the blouses.

One cannot but admire the intense detail of the motifs and therichness of colors and embroideries of this unique disappearing art. Some very demanding molasworkwise made by the best of experts show perfectly rendered backgrounds suchas these:

1) Labyrinth backgroundinspired by brain coral.

2) Tiny triangles lined withdifferent color fabrics.

3) Crosses likemultiplication signs.

4) Saw teeth lines

We are closing the doors of our Florida store located on FederalHighway in Boca Raton within the year in order to retire so we are selling asmuch as we can from the store and on the internet now.

Check Dominique Rice Oceania Store in Sun SentinelNewspaper, Fort Lauderdale, for information on our large collection ofauthentic art and rare artifacts.

We have artifacts, textiles, collectables and architecturalaccents up to 10 ft tall that we will put up upon request because shipping hasto be calculated accordingly with a trucking company.

Check my “Me” page(the “Me” is next to the star with my number oftransactions after my seller’s name asmatcollection in any of my listings) forvaluable information about all we carry besides what is currently listed sincewe do not have time to list everything at once and will add other items to thissite as time permits.

All our unusual handcrafted or rare items come with pages ofresearch and authenticity information concerning them, with history of thetribes and photos as well, depending on item and whenever possible.

In the case of the molas, we will send you 5 lengthy documents withphotos referring to everything you need to know about them, from their historyto their spiritual meanings or messages, the traditions still embraced thruthem, and the difficult task of creating them.

Molas are getting harderand harder to collect in the field and as a result have tripled or x 4 in priceon location, as the tradition is disappearing. We just returned from a trip toPanama and in many San Blas islands\' villages, we did not find a single personwearing one or having one for sale. It saddened us a great deal to see such awonderful art not being passed on to the next generation anymore as theknowledge and beauty of creating these artistic fabric panels is being lost asa result, but the next generation, as everywhere else, is not interested increating 2 blouse panels that can take, each, 1 month or more to complete, andare looking forward to a more modern future, while wearing western clothing,since now many islands have electricity which leads to computers, cell phonesand TV’s and to the extinction of the need to craft.

It is the first trip inoticed such a tremendous decrease in the production and wear of such awonderful and colorful traditional attire soon to be a distant memory. I amafraid true not-made-for-tourists molas which are the only kind we collect bychoice (unless we have requests for the other newer types: which are beautifulas well in their own respect, but were never worn on a blouse) will soon be allgone.

To this day, we haveprized ourselves in collecting the best we can find: authentic traditionalblouse mola panels, that we remove from the blouses ourselves, purchasing themone by one direct from the islands’ artists: we only collect work created with handsewnstitches, sometimes so small they are almost invisible,

This is a fabric art thatwill be a thing of the past in a very near future.

Additionalpictures placed here also show a variety of photos from our trips such as myhusband distributing goods to the Indian community, village scenes, a molabeing started, a Kuna woman wearing one, and also how they can be used in yourhome to create a great cheerful and colorful one of a kind accent.

If you want to see some of our framed molas,framed in unique signed hand painted frames matching each mola, or the fundelightful pillows we create with them, each one of a kind as well, contact usso that we can send you pictures which will give you wonderful ideas on how todisplay and use them in your home.

We sell our framed molas and pillows in artgalleries around Florida as well as in our store and sites.

When shippinginternationally, we group ship multiple purchases to save you money, and findthe best rates which often fails to calculate right. If you have any questionsor want to see research conducted on this piece and photos of tribes, email orcall us.


Mola Applique Folk Art Unique Quilted Panel Kuna Harvesting fruit 18X13\" Huge 33:
$69.99

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