Social Sciences and Humanities > Home > Art and Science > Issue
A few days before his death on May 8, 1880, Gustave Flaubert was working on the episode about botany, one of the last in his novel Bouvard and Pécuchet. To this end, inspired by a sentence by Rousseau about the calyx of flowers, which “is missing in most liliaceae,” he wrote a note in the form of a botanical enigma: to find a common plant, growing in Normandy in April, that would belong to a family that deviated from a general rule among plants (“Every plant has leaves, a calyx, and a corolla”), but which itself would deviate from this exception within its family (an exception to the exception). Without much familiarity with botany, Flaubert claimed to predict the existence of such a plant, while the enigma aroused caution among his more knowledgeable friends. An investigation by Maupassant allowed him to examine possible solutions, first among the Ranunculaceae and then the Rubiaceae, where the sherardia seemed to meet his expectations. This episode still leaves several questions unanswered, which we will attempt to shed light on, requiring a botanical and historical perspective on this enigma: why did Rousseau write “most”? Why did Flaubert reject Maupassant’s first solution? Why did he accept the second? Was the sherardia in 1880, and is it today, a good solution to his enigma? What natural or epistemological mechanisms produce exceptions to exceptions? How can this imaginary plant become the battleground for different conceptions of nature and knowledge, from the 19th to the 21st century?
Starting from a global historical view of the links between arts and sciences we first focus on the physical content of propagation, before looking at the long story of tiling and packing in art and science with questions and comments on these numerous links between all disciplines. After looking at the connections between art and science at industrial era, a word on the connections between different musical worlds enables us to conclude about how to improve the paths between arts and sciences in the future.
This study aims to understand the construction by Leonardo da Vinci of the Vitruvian Man, which represents the graphic resolution of an ancient challenge set by the Roman architect Marcus Vitruvius Pollio in his treatise De Architectura. It seeks to explain the genesis of this work, its progressive elaboration, and the way in which Leonardo succeeded in addressing a problem that had remained unanswered for centuries. The analysis also highlights the seminal role of mathematics, which since the earliest civilizations has been regarded as a universal language of knowledge and perfection. Long considered to unlock the secrets of the universe, its use in this emblematic drawing reveals Leonardo’s scientific spirit, driven by the pursuit of universal harmony.
2026
Volume 26- 10
Issue 12025
Volume 25- 9
Issue 12024
Volume 24- 8
Special issue2023
Volume 23- 7
Issue 12022
Volume 22- 6
Issue 12021
Volume 21- 5
Special issue2020
Volume 20- 4
Special issue2019
Volume 19- 3
Issue 12018
Volume 18- 2
Issue 12017
Volume 17- 1
Issue 1