---
title: "Dragon Birds and Insects (2004), Chico da Silva by Babá, painting"
description: "Dragon Birds and Insects (2004), Chico da Silva by Babá. Acrylic on canvas, 69 x 99 cm. Painting in the João Cunha Collection."
canonical: https://chicodasilva.org/en/paintings/dragon-birds-and-insects-2004-043/
lang: en
license: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
translations:
  en: https://chicodasilva.org/en/paintings/dragon-birds-and-insects-2004-043/
  es: https://chicodasilva.org/es/pinturas/dragon-aves-e-insectos-2004-043/
  fr: https://chicodasilva.org/fr/peintures/dragon-oiseaux-et-insectes-2004-043/
  pt: https://chicodasilva.org/pt/pinturas/dragao-aves-e-insetos-2004-043/
  ar: https://chicodasilva.org/ar/%D9%84%D9%88%D8%AD%D8%A7%D8%AA/%D8%AA%D9%86%D9%8A%D9%86-%D9%88%D8%B7%D9%8A%D9%88%D8%B1-%D9%88%D8%AD%D8%B4%D8%B1%D8%A7%D8%AA-2004-043/
  zh-Hans: https://chicodasilva.cn/%E4%BD%9C%E5%93%81/%E9%BE%99-%E9%B8%9F%E4%B8%8E%E6%98%86%E8%99%AB-2004-043/
---

# Dragon Birds and Insects

![Two large ornate birds with fanned tails and many small creatures against a yellow ground. Dragon Birds and Insects, Chico da Silva by Babá, 2004, acrylic on canvas.](https://img.chicodasilva.org/jcc-043/chico-da-silva-by-baba-dragon-birds-and-insects-2004-acrylic-on-canvas-69x99cm-joao-cunha-collection-jcc-043-chicodasilva.org-640.jpg)

[Download image](https://img.chicodasilva.org/jcc-043/chico-da-silva-by-baba-dragon-birds-and-insects-2004-acrylic-on-canvas-69x99cm-joao-cunha-collection-jcc-043-chicodasilva.org-3200.jpg)

Description for blind and low-vision visitors

A horizontal painting on a pale yellow ground that fills the whole field. Two large fantastical birds dominate the center: one on the left with a curved neck, a burst of fine orange and yellow plumes around its head, and a rounded body covered in concentric-circle eye-spots and scalloped scales in blue, green and rose; one on the right standing tall with a yellow crested head and a body of swirling purple and blue patterns. Their long tails sweep down into black-tipped feathers along the lower edge. Scattered around them are numerous small creatures: crested birds at the upper left, butterflies and spiky insects in the upper center, and crawling worm- and lizard-like forms across the lower center. The background carries faint feathery and dotted markings. Handwritten text sits at the lower left.

- **Artist:** [Chico da Silva by Babá](https://chicodasilva.org/en/biography/)
- **Year:** 2004
- **Technique:** Acrylic on canvas
- **Support:** Canvas
- **Dimensions:** 69 x 99 cm
- **Motif:** [Birds](https://chicodasilva.org/en/motifs/birds/)[Insects](https://chicodasilva.org/en/motifs/insects/)[Dragons](https://chicodasilva.org/en/motifs/dragons/)
- **Collection:** [João Cunha Collection](https://chicodasilva.org/en/about/)
- **Signature:** CHICO DA SILVA / POR BABÁ, lower left
- **Photo:** Eric Keki
- **Inventory no.:** [JCC-043](https://chicodasilva.org/id/jcc-043)
- **Article:** [The Instituto Oboé and the Pirambu Revival](https://chicodasilva.org/en/articles/instituto-oboe/)

## The signature

![Detail of the painted signature: «CHICO DA SILVA / POR BABÁ»](https://img.chicodasilva.org/signatures/baba-signature-2004-jcc-043-chicodasilva.org-640.jpg)

*The canvas is signed “CHICO DA SILVA / POR BABÁ”, in the lower left corner.*

## Provenance

1.  The artist, Fortaleza, 2004
2.  Instituto Cultural Oboé, Fortaleza
3.  Leilão Montenegro, auction, 2025
4.  João Cunha Collection

## How to credit

[Photographs free to reuse, with credit (CC BY 4.0)](https://chicodasilva.org/en/about/#license)

Chico da Silva by Babá, “Dragon Birds and Insects” (2004). Photo: Eric Keki, João Cunha Collection, CC BY 4.0. https://chicodasilva.org/id/jcc-043

The license covers the photograph, not the painting.

## For IIIF viewers

-   [IIIF manifest](https://chicodasilva.org/iiif/jcc-043/manifest.json)