One of the most recognizable forms of traditional art in Panama is the mola, the brilliantly coloured textile traditionally made by Guna women. If you have travelled through Panama, particularly around Guna Yala and the Caribbean coast, you have probably seen them: incredibly detailed panels of red, yellow, orange, blue, green and black fabric covered in animals, plants, geometric patterns and sometimes surprisingly modern images.
But there isn't really just one kind of mola. There are many different styles, subjects and designs, and part of the fun of looking at them is discovering how different two pieces can be.
A mola traditionally forms part of the blouse worn by Guna women. The word can refer to the blouse itself as well as to the decorated front and back panels. The panels are traditionally made using reverse appliqué, in which several layers of coloured fabric are sewn together and then carefully cut through so that the colours underneath are revealed. Additional appliqué and embroidery can be added to create incredibly detailed designs.
Geometric Molas
Some of the most traditional molas are based heavily on geometric designs. These can contain intricate patterns of diamonds, lines, spirals, repeating shapes and interlocking forms that seem to continue across the entire panel.
These designs are particularly interesting because they are not simply decorative patterns. The history of mola design is strongly associated with earlier Guna traditions of body painting. Over time, elements of those designs were transferred onto fabric.
A good geometric mola can be incredibly complicated. What looks like a simple colourful pattern from a distance can reveal layer after layer of tiny cuts and stitches when you examine it closely.
Animal Molas
Animal designs are among the most popular and visually impressive molas available to visitors.
You can find birds, fish, turtles, crabs, snakes, frogs, dogs, butterflies and many other animals represented in mola art. Some designs are immediately recognizable while others are highly stylized, with the animal incorporated into a much larger geometric composition.
The animals aren't necessarily intended to look like realistic wildlife illustrations. Instead, the artist adapts the animal to the structure of the textile, surrounding it with geometric shapes, colours and patterns. Museums with Guna collections include examples featuring birds, turtles, fish, crabs and other animals.
For a tourist in Panama, these can be particularly fun because you can sometimes recognize animals you have actually seen in the country's forests, rivers and Caribbean waters.
Plant and Nature Molas
Nature is another major source of inspiration. Flowers, leaves, vines and other plants can become incredibly elaborate designs.
Some of these pieces almost look like jungle paintings made from fabric. A brightly coloured flower might be surrounded by layers of geometric patterns, while leaves and vines can weave through the entire panel.
The connection with nature is an important part of the traditional visual vocabulary of the Guna people, and Panama's tropical environment provides an enormous collection of potential subjects. Panama's cultural authorities describe traditional mola designs as including symbolic representations of plants and animals as well as geometric forms.
Sea Life Molas
Considering that many Guna communities are located in and around the Caribbean islands of Guna Yala, it isn't surprising that marine life appears frequently in mola designs.
Fish, crabs, turtles and other sea creatures can be turned into incredibly colourful textile compositions. A fish mola can be particularly impressive when the body of the animal is filled with additional geometric patterns, creating designs within designs.
These pieces are also a wonderful reflection of the environment in which Guna communities have lived for generations. The Caribbean isn't simply scenery around the islands; it is an important part of everyday life and culture.
Figurative Molas
Some molas go beyond animals and plants and depict people, scenes and activities.
These can tell much more of a story than a simple geometric design. You might see people working, dancing, travelling or participating in everyday activities.
The Guna mola tradition has continued to evolve, and modern figurative designs can incorporate subjects that would have been unimaginable in earlier generations. Panama's cultural heritage documentation notes that contemporary mola makers have created designs depicting things such as boats and airplanes while continuing to preserve traditional geometric motifs.
Modern and Unusual Molas
This is where looking at molas becomes particularly entertaining.
Not every mola you see will feature a traditional bird, turtle or geometric pattern. Artists have also incorporated modern objects, popular culture and scenes from the outside world.
Museum collections document molas depicting everything from advertisements and political imagery to everyday modern objects.
This means you might find a beautifully hand sewn traditional textile that suddenly contains something completely unexpected.
That mixture of ancient artistic techniques and modern subjects is one of the things that makes mola art so interesting. It isn't a frozen art form that stopped developing hundreds of years ago. Guna artists continue to adapt their designs while maintaining the traditional techniques.
Molitas: The Little Molas
You may also come across something called a molita, which literally means a little mola.
These are smaller versions of mola panels and are often made specifically for sale rather than being used as part of a full traditional blouse. Collections include small molitas featuring animals such as toucans.
For tourists, these can be particularly practical because a full sized mola panel can be quite large, while a molita is much easier to pack into a suitcase.
Why Every Mola Is Different
One of the most remarkable things about traditional molas is the amount of work involved.
The artist begins with multiple layers of fabric. Instead of simply sewing a picture onto the surface, she cuts through the layers to reveal different colours underneath, carefully turns the edges and stitches them into place. More layers, appliqué and embroidery can then be added to create additional details.
A complex mola can therefore contain an enormous amount of tiny handwork. One museum source notes that even relatively simple pieces require many hours of sewing, while Smithsonian reporting has estimated that a traditional blouse can require roughly 60 to 80 hours of work.
This is why two molas depicting the same animal can still look completely different. The colours, composition, number of layers, stitching and interpretation all depend on the individual artist.
Molas Are More Than Souvenirs
It is tempting for tourists to think of a mola as simply a colourful souvenir from Panama, but it represents much more than that.
The mola is an important part of Guna cultural identity and traditional women's clothing. The knowledge and techniques involved in making them have been passed between generations of Guna women.
For visitors, one of the best ways to appreciate a mola is to look closely at the workmanship rather than simply choosing the brightest one. Look at the tiny stitches. Examine how many layers of fabric have been used. See how the artist has created a complicated animal or geometric pattern from pieces of coloured cloth.
And if you find a particularly beautiful one, remember that you're looking at something that may have taken many hours of someone's life to create.
The next time you see a mola in Panama, don't just see a colourful piece of fabric. Look at it as a miniature piece of Guna history, art and craftsmanship, with every layer and stitch helping tell the story.