Beneath the surface: maths
From 11 September 2025 to 21 March 2026, the exhibition “Sous la surface, les maths” (Beneath the surface: maths) will be on display in the Espace Laurent Schwartz at the Maison Poincaré, at the Institut Henri Poincaré (CNRS/Sorbonne University) in Paris. The exhibition aims to explore the design of virtual worlds, delve behind the scenes and discover the mathematical concepts at play in digital images.
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From September 11th to March 21st
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Exhibition
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Maison Poincaré, 11 rue Pierre et Marie Curie, 75005 Paris
How can a 3D object be represented in 2D? How can convincing video game characters and settings be created? What is the link between sewing, geography and computer graphics? Thanks to the exhibition “Sous la surface, les maths” (Beneath the surface: maths), visitors will discover the mathematical principles at work behind these questions! Through games, explanatory videos, measuring devices and mathematical models, visitors will become experts on the creation of digital surfaces.
In 2018, to mark the 100th anniversary of the death of geometer Gaston Darboux, the Institut Henri Poincaré presented the exhibition at the Musée des Arts et Métiers. This year, it returns with additional content. The exhibition will feature original material, including works by Pierre Gallais, models from the institute's collection, 3D prints of fractals, and devices illustrating the link between mathematical surfaces and the measurement of the Earth.
The first part of the exhibition focuses on the representation of 3D objects on a 2D plane, a problem that Renaissance painters had previously tried to grapple with. The journey then continues, not to the centre of the Earth, but to its surface. How do we go from the globe to a world map? Finally, the industry secrets that make video games so realistic and lifelike will be revealed; from water droplets to skin texture and lighting effects.
Created and produced by the Institut Henri Poincaré, in partnership with the Institut Henri Poincaré Endowment Fund and the Musée des Arts et Métiers, this exhibition is aimed at families with children aged 14 and above.
NOTE: exhibition in French.