Panama (Guna Yala), circa 1983
13.25 × 17 inches
A vibrant political mola panel worked in 3 layers with reverse appliqué, appliqué, and embroidery commemorating the Guna General Congress held in Ustupu on April 21, 1983. The composition displays "P.N.P." prominently at top, referencing the Partido Nacionalista Popular, a political party the Guna chose to support in opposition to the military regime of General Manuel Noriega. Text bands read "KUNAYALA" and "USTUPU, " with additional text including "ACONVENDIO" (a convention) and "PARTIDO NACIONAL" with the date "21 DE ABRIL DE 1983."
The central field features a Guna woman dressed in a mola blouse, wearing a nose ring, and holding symbolic objects including a mirror, a voting ballot, a wooden mortar for hulling rice, and the symbol of the four directions—the wheel of life. Decorative cross motifs are scattered throughout, worked in multiple colors against black grounds. The Guna General Congress, held annually since approximately 1926 in rotating village locations, gathers the Sahilas (chiefs) from each community to deliberate on matters of collective importance, including political endorsements. Because Guna communities traditionally vote as a bloc, their support carried significant political weight during this era of electoral interference.
This one shows that the Guna Congresso decided to back the PNP (Partido Nacionalista Popular) in opposition to the strongman military dictator, General Manual Noriega.
As characteristic of Guna textile tradition, the letters and numbers are rendered from memory and exhibit variations in form and spacing, reflecting the maker’s visual interpretation of political signage and printed materials. Worked in brilliant orange ground with red, black, pink, yellow, blue, green, and purple layers. Fine hand-stitching throughout with consistent stitch density. Dense, fully filled composition demonstrating strong technical control and sophisticated cutwork with complex curves and nested forms around the figurative elements.
Provenance: From the Parker & Neal Collection
THIS IS AN UPDATED DESCRIPTION BASED ON INFORMATION GENEROUSLY PROVIDED BY PRUDENCE GRISSOM, AUTHOR OF A SOON TO PUBLISHED BOOK "Molas: Past, Present & Future—the Enduring Art of the Guna/Kuna"
