--- title: "Where to see Brazilian naïve art in France" description: "The MANAS in Laval and the Cérès Franco museum in Montolieu hold Brazilian naïve art. Works, catalogues and what to check before planning a visit." canonical: https://chicodasilva.org/en/articles/where-to-see-brazilian-naive-art-france/ lang: en license: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ translations: en: https://chicodasilva.org/en/articles/where-to-see-brazilian-naive-art-france/ fr: https://chicodasilva.org/fr/articles/ou-voir-art-naif-bresilien-france/ pt: https://chicodasilva.org/pt/artigos/onde-ver-arte-naif-brasileira-franca/ --- Art and artists # Where to see Brazilian naïve art in France The MANAS in Laval and the Cérès Franco museum in Montolieu hold Brazilian naïve art. Works, catalogues and what to check before planning a visit. In Laval, Brazilian painting entered a naïve art museum through an initiative by Iracema. In Montolieu, it belongs to Cérès Franco’s collection, formed through relationships with artists, exhibitions and galleries. Both French towns hold works by Chico da Silva, but the routes that brought the paintings there are different.[^bresil][^ceres][^franco] The MANAS in Laval and the Coopérative-Musée Cérès Franco in Montolieu allow those routes to be researched through identified works. Their holdings interest visitors planning a trip as well as readers looking for reproductions, titles and exhibition references. Before choosing a travel date, locate the painting in the documentation: a work owned by a museum may be in storage or on loan, while an exhibition reproduction may show a borrowed work that has returned to its owner. ## Iracema makes the connection with Laval The Musée d’Art Naïf et d’Arts Singuliers occupies the Vieux-Château on place de la Trémoille. When the museum opened in 1967, Iracema gave works from her collection and encouraged artists from her country to do the same. The MANAS’s own account gives the Brazilian painter an active role in forming the group. In 1972, the museum’s founding director Jean-Pierre Bouvet travelled to São Paulo and expanded those relationships.[^bresil] Iracema, Ivonaldo, Lacerda and Neuton appear in the account of the exchange. The Brazilian section grew through donations and contacts that preceded the digital circulation of images. Its origins help explain why research needs to include donors’ names and exhibitions alongside each painter’s name. In 2017, the MANAS returned to that history in *Brésil, un réalisme magique*, organised in partnership with the Jacques Ardiès gallery in São Paulo. The exhibition combined a selection from the collection with loans from private collectors.[^bresil] Its documentation provides references for further research, with a necessary distinction: the works in that exhibition do not all belong to the museum. ## A Chico in the French catalogue The MANAS lists Chico da Silva under Francisco da Silva. Its page reproduces *Animaux fantastiques*, a gouache on paper dated 1966 by the museum.[^chico] When looking for documentation, keep both forms of the name and the French title. The record does not use the same vocabulary as a search made only for “Chico” in Portuguese. ![Three creatures with long necks, open beaks or jaws and bodies striped in pink, blue and green face one another against a yellow background; plants grow beside ochre ground.](https://chicodasilva.org/editorial/brazilian-naive-art-france/chico-manas-640.jpg) *Animaux fantastiques. Gouache on paper, dated 1966 in the MANAS catalogue. Chico da Silva. Reproduction published by the MANAS, Laval; photographer not stated. [Francisco da Silva record at the MANAS](https://musees.laval.fr/manas/francisco-da-silva/).* The reproduction shows three creatures approaching from different directions. The smallest descends from the left; the central figure lifts its head; the bird on the right curves its neck and points its long beak towards the encounter. Their bodies have broad pink, green and blue bands interrupted by areas of smaller motifs. Yellow between the figures makes the movement of their heads easy to follow. Paper is a fact in the record, as useful as the subject. A photograph can make works on different supports and at different scales look similar. When comparing the French catalogue image with another Chico painting, material identification restores differences that a computer screen tends to erase. [![Two ornately patterned roosters facing off over a leafy branch, bordered by a wavy marbled band. Cockfight, Chico da Silva, 1972, gouache on canvas.](https://img.chicodasilva.org/jcc-074/chico-da-silva-cockfight-1972-gouache-on-canvas-60x100cm-joao-cunha-collection-jcc-074-chicodasilva.org-1280.jpg)](https://chicodasilva.org/en/paintings/cockfight-1972-074/) *[Cockfight (1972)](https://chicodasilva.org/en/paintings/cockfight-1972-074/), Chico da Silva João Cunha Collection.* *Cockfight*, painted in 1972, belongs to the João Cunha Collection and is a gouache on canvas measuring 60 × 100 cm. The format is wider: the cockerels face one another across a green branch, surrounded by curved bands of colour that almost close an inner frame. The bird on the left carries a four-petalled flower on its body; the one on the right has large spirals across its neck. Before individual marks are examined, the width organises the interval between the animals. The comparison helps formulate better questions when consulting a collection: is the support paper or canvas, what are the dimensions, does the reproduction show the entire painting? The 1972 gouache provides a reference for scale and composition in that reading without belonging to Laval’s holdings. In both cases, the individual record supplies an identification that a broad search for fantastic animals cannot provide. ## Cérès Franco: a Brazilian and international collection Cérès Franco was born in Brazil in 1926, studied in the United States and settled in Paris in 1951. She worked as a critic and built her collection through encounters with artists and exhibition activity. In 1994, she opened works from her collection to the public in two houses in Lagrasse. The collection reached the former wine cooperative in Montolieu in 2015.[^franco] That route explains part of the difference from Laval’s Brazilian group. In Montolieu, Brazilian naïve art meets South American popular art, CoBrA and other figurative work. The museum’s presentation describes a collection formed from the 1950s, with artists from many countries.[^ceres] Interest in a Brazilian painter can therefore lead into exhibition and collecting relationships extending beyond national divisions. The museum’s material history continued after the collection was assembled. The collection was donated in 2020; the institution received the designation *Musée de France* in December 2025 and reopened in June 2026 after enlargement work.[^museum][^exhibition] Earlier records remain useful for the museum’s history. Consult its current website for visiting information and programmes. The works selected in the [collection presentation](https://www.museeceresfranco.com/musee/la-collection/) include *Imaginaire Amazonien* by Francisco Da Silva.[^ceres] Another institutional publication, about the *Musée de France* designation, provides a reproduction with an inventory reference: *Sans titre \[Dragon et héron\]*, 1966, gouache on paper, CF 43.[^museum] ![A long-necked creature with an open toothed mouth faces a bird with a long beak and striped neck against yellow; a green trunk with white branches occupies the right.](https://chicodasilva.org/editorial/brazilian-naive-art-france/chico-ceres-cf43-1280.jpg) *Untitled \[Dragon and heron\] (Sans titre \[Dragon et héron\]), 1966. Gouache on paper. La Coopérative-Musée Cérès Franco, CF 43. Chico da Silva. La Coopérative-Musée Cérès Franco, CF 43. Photograph: Alain Machélidon / La Coopérative-Musée Cérès Franco; reproduced by the Ministère de la Culture. [Ministère de la Culture publication](https://www.culture.gouv.fr/regions/drac-occitanie/actualites/actualite-a-la-une/un-nouveau-musee-de-france-en-occitanie).* A creature with a toothed mouth raises its head from the left towards the centre; the bird on the right lowers its long beak towards the encounter. Their necks curve in opposite directions, leaving a yellow opening between them. On the right, a green trunk with white branches visually supports the bird’s thin leg. The reproduction shows the whole sheet, its irregular edge against a white margin. The reference CF 43 makes it possible to request documentation for a particular painting. In an enquiry to the museum, that number identifies the work more precisely than the subject “fantastic animals”. It accompanies the reproduction alongside its support and date, even when the research changes language. ## From documentation to the exhibition room For a visit to the MANAS, the [visitor information page](https://musees.laval.fr/manas/pratique/) brings together opening times, contacts and confirmation of free admission to the collections and temporary exhibitions. The [programme](https://musees.laval.fr/manas/category/expositions/) identifies the announced displays. In Montolieu, the address is 5, route d’Alzonne, and the [opening times page](https://www.museeceresfranco.com/infos-pratiques/horaires-et-tarifs/) distinguishes periods of the year.[^hours] When consulted on 23 October 2026, Laval advertised morning and afternoon opening from Tuesday to Saturday, and afternoons on Sundays. Montolieu advertised mornings and afternoons from Tuesday to Sunday until 1 November, switching to afternoons from 3 November. Full times and exceptions remain in the official links, which should guide the choice of day.[^hours] If the trip depends on seeing one work, an enquiry to the museum can bring together: - The artist’s name in the forms used by the institution, such as Chico da Silva and Francisco da Silva. - The exact title in the record, with an inventory number when available. - The intended visit date and a question about whether the work will be on view. - A request for a catalogue reference if research will continue even when the painting is not displayed. A reply can settle the visiting question and leave a useful research detail. For Laval, the 2017 exhibition catalogue helps reconstruct the exchange initiated by Iracema; in Montolieu, the history of Cérès Franco’s collection follows a different route of arrival. [^bresil]: MANAS. [*Brésil, un réalisme magique*](https://musees.laval.fr/manas/bresil-un-realisme-magique-2/), exhibition of 28 January–30 April 2017. Iracema’s gifts from 1967, Jean-Pierre Bouvet’s 1972 visit and the combination of collection works and loans. [^ceres]: Coopérative-Musée Cérès Franco. [*Notre collection*](https://www.museeceresfranco.com/musee/la-collection/), updated 5 June 2026. Formation, artistic currents and selected works, including *Imaginaire Amazonien*. [^franco]: DRAC Occitanie, Ministère de la Culture. [*L’hommage de la Drac à Cérès Franco, collectionneuse d’art*](https://www.culture.gouv.fr/regions/drac-occitanie/actualites/actualite-a-la-une/L-hommage-de-la-Drac-a-Ceres-Franco-collectionneuse-d-art), 18 November 2021. Education, Paris, public opening in Lagrasse and arrival in Montolieu. [^chico]: MANAS. [*Francisco da Silva*](https://musees.laval.fr/manas/francisco-da-silva/). Reproduction and identification of *Animaux fantastiques*, gouache on paper, 1966. [^museum]: Ministère de la Culture. [*Un nouveau musée de France en Occitanie*](https://www.culture.gouv.fr/regions/drac-occitanie/actualites/actualite-a-la-une/un-nouveau-musee-de-france-en-occitanie), 17 December 2025. Donation in 2020 and designation received on 1 December 2025. [^exhibition]: Coopérative-Musée Cérès Franco. [*Les aventuriers de l’œil-de-bœuf : 100 artistes en hommage à Cérès Franco*](https://www.museeceresfranco.com/evenement/les-aventuriers-de-loeil-de-boeuf-100-artistes-en-hommage-a-ceres-franco/), updated 30 July 2026. Reopening in June 2026. [^hours]: MANAS, [*Pratique*](https://musees.laval.fr/manas/pratique/); Coopérative-Musée Cérès Franco, [*Horaires et tarifs*](https://www.museeceresfranco.com/infos-pratiques/horaires-et-tarifs/). Accessed 23 October 2026. The Montolieu page was updated on 23 September 2026. ## Related reading - [Chico da Silva and Brazilian Naïve Art](https://chicodasilva.org/en/articles/brazilian-naive-art/) - [Heitor dos Prazeres: paintings, samba and everyday life](https://chicodasilva.org/en/articles/heitor-dos-prazeres-paintings/)