Mola Designs: Patterns from Panama Coloring Book

Soft cover book with staple binding. 48 pages with 22 images to color. Size: 8½ x 11 in.

Coloring pages are blank on the back so they can be cut out and displayed.

The Kuna Indian women of the San Blas Archipelago, a 140-mile group of islands off the Gulf Coast of Panama, have sewn and worn molas for a century or more. Mola, a Kuna word for blouse, also refers to the decorative panels that make up parts of the traditional blouse. Molas may be adorned with abstract or geometric shapes, plants and animals, representations of daily life, or, more recently, icons from outside cultures.

The Kuna seamstress stacks layers of colored fabric and cuts the upper layers to expose the contrasting underlying colors, turning the edges under and stitching them. She may further ornament the mola with appliqué and embroidery.

Every mola is a thoughtful statement of the creator s personality and relationship with her culture. This coloring book presents twenty-two unique expressions of a living, thriving tradition.

The Museum of International Folk Art, in Santa Fe, New Mexico, is the largest museum of its kind in the world and is dedicated to celebrating the artistic traditions and designs of the world s cultures.