Since 1530, the Collège de France, a major historical institution located just a stone's throw from the Sorbonne, has welcomed the greatest scientists from France and around the world, with a dual objective: to be "the place for the most audacious research and the place for its teaching in Paris". Every year, thepublic institution of higher education and research offers nearly 1,000 courses and conferences open to all, with no registration required, as well as exhibitions for the general public!
From April 25, 2024, to July 12, 2024, focus on research conducted since the 19th century to measure, understand and care for the human and animal body in a free exhibition entitled "À bras-le-corps!". The exhibition showcases some 50historic scientific instruments, offering an unprecedented exploration of theevolution of experimental science from the French Revolution to 1920.
We're transported into the atmosphere of scientific laboratories, where great scientific figures come to life! At the intersection of physics, physiology and psychology, this exhibition resonates with contemporary research, representations and issues concerning the body and medicine.
Claude Bernard, Étienne-Jules Marey, Arsène d'Arsonval and other illustrious scientists are in the spotlight, offering visitors the chance to relive their pioneering experiments. Visitors can reconstruct Claude Bernard's experiments on liver glycemia. They can reproduce the decomposition of movement explored by Étienne-Jules Marey and discover the principles of biomechanics thanks to his smoke machine. They'll learn how themedical electricity advocated by Arsène d'Arsonval, a prolific inventor, worked. They can also explore theexpression of emotions through the photographs of Charles-Émile François-Franck, or the measurement of voice and hearing by René Marage and Abbé Rousselot.
Theanalysis of muscular effort, observed on athletes at the 1900 Olympic Games and then measured by Józefa Joteyko, will give an insight into the interest of these scientists inphysical education, while composer Marie Jaëll's work on theagility of pianists' fingers will show how the instruments created at the Collège have been used in many fields.
Around the scientists, a multitude of other players appear: auditors, assistants, instrument manufacturers, industrialists, academics, politicians, not forgetting civil society which, through its therapeutic hopes and militant commitments, is far from insensitive to the science being developed in the laboratories of the Collège de France.
A gallery of instruments reveals more about the manufacturers, indispensable allies of Collège de France scientists engaged in experimentation. Over the course of the 19th century, these " artist-builders " became engineers trained at prestigious schools, and were at the origin of several major 20th-century industrial companies.
With texts, objects and a host of interactive features, the"À bras-le-corps!" exhibition presents a rich and varied picture of science in the making - a picture that is as valid for the long 19th century as it is for our own time. It's an opportunity to inspire vocations and learn more about one of the capital's most prestigious research establishments.
Highlights
To accompany you in your discovery of the exhibition, we offer a range of mediation services:
Guided tours with a mediator for school groups (primary, junior high, high school, higher education) - reservation for school groups
Guided tours for adults with a mediator - individual booking
And Wednesday June 26 at 6pm, a lecture by Martina Schiavon on Les constructeurs d'instruments scientifiques aux alentours du Collège de France (XVIIIe-XIXe siècle), une histoire encore à écrire - Find out more
