The mola, or molas, forms part of the traditional outfit of a Kuna woman in Panama. In Dulegaya, the Kuna’s native language, mola actually means “shirt” or “clothing.” The mola stems from a Kunan tradition of women painting their bodies with geometric designs. These designs were later woven into cotton and then sewn into cloth that was acquired from the European settlers of Panama. The way that molas are made is with a reverse applique technique. What this means is that the different colored layers of fabric are stacked and stitched together; the colors visible through cutaway parts of the fabric. For today’s activity we will be emulating mola art using paper!

Although not created on what would be considered a traditional loom, today’s craft is inspired by an ancient Mexican weaving technique called Zapotec weaving. The Zapotec are an ancient people, also known as the “cloud people” that lived in the Oaxacan Valley in Mexico. The Zapotec people are responsible for the building the great cities of Monte Alban and Mitla as well as leaving behind evidence of their unique weaving traditions. ​

For today’s craft we will be making Muñecas quitapena, or Worry dolls. These small, hand-made dolls originate from Guatemala and are actually meant to help children alleviate their troubles. As the old Mayan legend goes, children will tell their worries to the muñeca (doll), place the doll under their pillow before they go to sleep, and in the morning the dolls will have given the children advice on how to eliminate their worries. The origin of the Muñecas quitapena actually represent a legend about a Mayan princess named Ixmucane (icks-moo-ca-neigh ca is pronounced like CO in complete) who was gifted an item from the sun god that helped her solve any problem a human could worry about. https://www.commonhope.org/the-legend-of-the-guatemalan-worry-doll/ 

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​Arpilleras, meaning “Burlap” in Spanish, are works of South American folk-art incorporating applique, embroidery, and patchwork. The most famous arpilleras and arpilleristas stem from Chile. The women, or arpilleristas, that created these arpilleras more often than not depicted sad scenes from their lives during the Pinochet dictatorship. Today we will be creating collage art inspired by these beautiful works of art.

Our new Executive Director, Amy Shipley, is a librarian with nearly 20 years experience in Western Colorado libraries. She really began her career in libraries as a child visiting the Main Branch of Mesa County Libraries where her mother worked. After college, having earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Spanish, Amy didn't have a solid plan for what to do next, so, as many librarians do, she fell into library work by applying for a job at Mesa County Libraries, where she grew up. That part-time position soon morphed into a full-time position, and then into a promotion and a move to an academic library at the then named Mesa State College. While there, Amy decided to pursue her Masters degree in Library and Information Science.
  
Amy received her Master of Library and Information Science degree from Florida State University, studying online while working full time at Mesa State College. Upon receipt of her degree, Amy's first professional position was as Acquisitions Librarian at Garfield County Libraries. Amy worked for 13 years at Garfield County Libraries, promoting to Technical Services Manager, then to Assistant Executive Director. Amy also served as Interim Executive Director. While at Garfield County Libraries, Amy led a ballot measure to "de-Bruce" the library's funding sources, and also helped lead a ballot measure to increase funding for the library. Her favorite part of her job is supervising and leading staff. 

In other professional work, Amy is the co-chair of the Colorado Association of Libraries Leadership Institute Committee which creates and presents a biennial leadership institute for library staff in Colorado. Learning to lead is a lifelong pursuit for Amy, one which she feels she'll never finish. Amy's passion in library work is supporting and leading staff to help them become the best they can be so that they, in turn, can best serve our community. Outside of work, Amy is a beginner watercolor artist, a hobby she took up during the pandemic to have a creative outlet to support her mental health. She also loves hiking in the summer, cross country skiing in the winter, and fly fishing all of the amazing water we have in our area. And, of course, she loves reading!  She'll be listening to lots of audiobooks on her commute to the library!

Amy begins with us on Tuesday, September 14, and is excited to get to know the people in our community. Please stop by the library to introduce yourself. Amy would love to hear about what you're reading and to share with you her latest read as well.