How-to Projects: Mola Art
Molas are brightly colored appliques made by the Kuna Indians in the San Blas region of Panama that often depict animals, birds or plant shapes. Appliques are fabric patterns that are stitched on top of another piece of fabric. The mola appliques are sewn on the front and back of the Kuna women's blouses for decoration. The panels are also sold to tourists and are highly prized collectors' pieces for both individuals and museums. Any fraying or fading from the sun adds to their authenticty, but the molas are often matted and framed to protect the fabric from further damage.
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Things You'll Need
- Construction paper
- Scissors
- Glue
- Crayons
- Oil pastels
- Colored paper scraps
Instructions
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Choose three different pieces of construction paper for contrast. There are three layers to a mola; each layer adds to the depth of the design.
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2
Sketch a simple bird, a turtle or other animal, or a flower, by tracing your fist on one sheet of construction paper with a crayon of any color. Add a head, beak, wings, petals, tail or any other features necessary for your particular animal, bird or plant. The design can be drawn free-form, but tracing your hand gives it an authentically primitive look.
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Cut out the finished outline in one piece and then glue it to a piece of construction paper in a contrasting color. Apply glue on the side of the cutout with the crayon outline to hide the sketch marks. Cut it out again, leaving a 1/4-inch border of the contrasting color showing all around the edge.
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4
Glue the double-layered cutout to the center of the background paper. Once the glue is dry, embellish the mola with oil pastels and small pieces of colored paper. Add simple details such as eyes, feathers or claws. You can also decorate the background with colorful stripes or small cut paper circles or squares.
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References
- Photo Credit color paper samples #9 image by stassad from Fotolia.com
