Els Mommers – Country – Flora/Fauna
PANAMA: FLORA AND FAUNA
What came up in my mind first, thinking about the flora and fauna of the islands, was of course, the palm trees, with the abundance of coconuts, that grow there. Next was the fish that is being caught and cleaned daily for the banana-fish soup that is made on a wood fire and which is the daily diet of the Indians living on het islands.
I appliqued the tree trunk and the coconuts on a hand painted background. The palm leaves are first painted with an acrylic pen and later thread painted by machine. The island in the distance, with all the palm trees is a phototransfer with gel medium on organza.
The lady who cleans the silver fish is made with the paper doll technique explained in the book “Create landscape quilts” by Meri Henriques Vahl. The lady with the bunch of bananas and the bowl with fish is first drawn on water-soluble fleece and then sewed onto the background in front of the banana tree. She is wearing a part of an original mola blouse and skirts and head scarfs of both ladies are pieces of original clothing of the Indians also.
As in all the other pieces of this year’s challenge I have added on the side, a piece of a panel of an original mola blouse, that has been worn by an Indian woman. I was lucky enough to find, in my collection, a piece with two birds, which fits nicely into this theme. Sky and sea are machine quilted and the beach part is hand quilted.
Pictures of the whole process can be seen on my blog: http://kunamola.blogspot.com
Original part of a mola panel:
Detail – coconuts
Detail – Kuna Indian ladies
detail: Kuna Indian ladies.
FIFTEEN BY FIFTEEN 
A great representation based on the culture of the Panamas. As usual the techniques used are creative and insightful. Well done
Once again you have managed to add the mola seamlessly into your piece. There is so much information that you have managed to include, well done, I love it.
What a wonderful, complex story captured in such a small textile artwork, perfect!
As always, I admire the creativity, well thought out design and techniques you use to bring your molas to life. What a beautiful finale to your series. Love it!
A wonderful piece to end your series. Impressive is your ability to use various techniques in a small space. Stunning as usual.
Beautiful story telling in the quilt. I love the colors and you integrate the molas in your work. Gorgeous Els. Bravo!
As with all your quilts, of the challenge and in general, I really like the way it is done, the use of colors and handwork. Really great.
Fascinating how many techniques you know and are able to use in such a small piece. The result is stunning and, of course, has your signature. True masterpiece!
As always a lot of different techniques in one piece. Beautiful! How lucky you found an original mola piece with birds.perfect for this theme. A great series!
A wonderful end to your series and what a lot of techniques you have used to create it. The colours are so vibrant and the mola piece is beautiful. I love it
It is incredible how you manage to create an harmony between your own style and a piece of traditional mola ! Bravo !
The painted background adds such realism to your quilt, and I love how you have incorporated small sections of your mola as clothing for the women. Stunning as usual!
As always, I’m so impressed with the range of techniques that you include in one small quilt. This is beautiful – my favourite is the palm tree and coconuts.
I am in awe of the many techniques you use in all of your quilts and thanks for going into such detail. The mola with the birds is absolutely beautiful and so fitting here. A very fitting finale to your wonderful series!