Bumblebees Take The Morning Shift Among The Flowers Panama Mola

Bumblebees Take The Morning Shift Among The Flowers Mola is a hand sewn textile by a Guna (Kuna) artisan in Panama. Two bumblebees work the upper half of the panel, each in its own arched frame among leaves and little flower rosettes, like a pair of shop windows. It hums with a busy, contented energy, the feeling of a garden in full swing. The panel is 17 inches wide and 13 inches high, a roomy size for a kitchen wall or a spot above a potting bench. Any gardener in your life would happily hang it by the back door.

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: PM3651T