Parallelism and meaning

Understanding molas as twinned pairs

Bibliographic Data

ID2391088
AuthorsDiana Marks (0000-0003-4265-0047, Independent Scholar, Australia, corresponding author)
Year2016
Volume21
Issue3
Pages317-342
Publication date2016-09-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueJournal of Material Culture (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1359-1835 • E-ISSN: 1460-3586
PublisherSAGE Publications Inc (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1177/1359183515625362
OpenAlexW2406577520
LanguageEN
Citations received4
References cited14

For over 100 years, Kuna Indian women and girls have sewn and worn the mola blouse as part of their dress ensemble. On the front and back of the blouses are mola panels, conceived and created as a pair. The pair of mola panels may be nearly identical or different. The relationship between a pair of mola panels is discussed in terms of the impact on the designs of Kuna culture and ethnoaesthetic criteria, especially layering, filler techniques, symmetry and colour preferences, as well as sewing techniques and material usage. Aspects of Kuna sociality, cosmology and verbal oratory are explored. In most cases it is possible to establish a thematic relationship between the back and front mola panels of a mola blouse. An object-based material culture approach contributes to an enhanced understanding of the complexities of mola making, including the technical skills required to design and manipulate layers of cloth. The importance of understanding mola panels as twinned pairs is highlighted by evaluating individual panels in pairs based on the examination of mola collections from six museums. This research also provides practical information for museum curators and others to establish which individual mola panels in collections may constitute a pair, originating from the same mola blouse

Epistemology · Meaning (existential · Object (grammar · Art Education and Development · Computer Science · Crafts, Textile, and Design · Fashion and Cultural Textiles · Philosophy

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