At the beginning of the Seventeenth century, Caravaggio painted "Nature morte aux fruits". More than 250 years after Paul Cézanne gives birth to "The Basket of apples". Two paintings that nothing unites in appearance, if not the talent of the two artists. And yet. For the teacher Ive De Smet and dr. David Vergauwen, respectively, researchers at the flemish Institute of Biotechnology (VIB) and the institute Amarant, these tables may prove to be an incredible wealth of scientific. According to The Guardian, the two men hope to, in effect, to profit from the old tables to study the evolution of plants that are part of our diet.
With this objective in mind, scientists have therefore decided to launch an appeal to the public to receive various pictures and various paintings. Concretely, from the photos, they hope to be able to see the shapes and colors taken by the fruits and vegetables over the years and even centuries. "This method allows us to consider the art collections of the world, including the sculptures or the art of painting, as the largest historical database of any fruit, vegetable, seed, nuts, and even grain that has never been used, detail the researchers.
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The roots of the carrots
many Of the fruits and vegetables we consume today are of wild origin. They have been domesticated and improved over the years. A process that has led to changes regarding the size, the color or even the thorns. It is in this context that the dépiction made by the artists can play a major role, especially when it proves to be accurate. In fact, the DNA of plants that have grown in the past may prove to be a real challenge for science.
Their work, conducted for several years, has already borne fruit in a way to the least particular. In fact, they have helped revive the debate about the orange color of the carrot, as reported in an article published in ScienceDirect in 2016. Thus, according to the belief, there would be a variety cultivated from the Xvi century, in honour of prince William of Orange. But, this vegetable will appear with this color in works of art dating back to an earlier era.
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A success which of course makes the idea of putting the hand on new findings. "When you visit a museum or an exhibition, take a photo of the art work, the details of the plants and the explanatory sign, and this in accordance with the rules on photographs before sending them to Artgeneticsdavidive@gmail.com" invite the researchers.
