Object Record
Images
Metadata
Title |
Black Shift Dress with Mola Motif, c. 1970s |
Object Name |
Dress, Sheath |
Description |
Black Shift Dress with Mola Motif, c. 1970s. Black polyester satin sleeveless shift dress with multicolored intricate Mola motif on large pocket. Motif may represent an owl or beetle. Design is constructed of appliques in burgundy, dark pink, and metallic mesh, which are edged with magenta, blue, purple and teal crocheted yarn, and accented with brass spangles, on off-white polyester crepe. Edges of collar, armholes, side seam-lines and hemline are trimmed with metallic mesh, attached with pink and magenta crocheted yarn. Warp of mesh is metal wire and weft is thread. Mesh has blue oxidation, possibly containing copper. Possibly gold-plated buttons on side. |
Date |
c. 1970s |
Creator |
Unknown |
Role |
Fiber Artist |
Catalog Number |
2019.120.007 |
Dimensions |
H-36 W-24 D-1 inches |
Collection |
3D - Clothing |
Inscription Text |
n/a |
Provenance |
Costume material worn by Grace Blick Green who moved from San Francisco to Hillborough in 1916 and attended San Mateo High School. Costume specialist Laura Cox stated this shift dress may be a tourist item, purchased on a trip to Panamá. |
Notes |
"A main concept in Molas is to leave as little unworked space as possible as the Kunas believe that evil spirits can settle in the free spaces." [ https://www.panama-mola.com/english/what-are-molas/meaning-of-mola-symbols/ ] "Anthropologists trace the origins of mola art back to the elaborate designs Kuna women once painted on their bodies. When Spanish colonizers and missionaries compelled them to wear clothes, they simply transposed these decorative motifs onto fabric." [ http://sacredartpilgrim.com/schools/view/9 ] |
Search Terms |
1970s Costume and Fashion Costumes Dress Dresses Green, Grace Blick Hillsborough San Mateo County |
Subjects |
Costumes Crocheting Dress Dresses Embroidery Owls |
People |
Green, Grace Blick |
Credit line |
Courtesy of Diane Green Tokheim |