Maimonides – The Golden mean
Haifa, December 2017
The patient emotional background, Maimonides argued, is an essential part of the treatment itself, and even if the disease’s physiological cause identified, it is up to the therapist to remember that medicine is both a body and a soul. In one of his medical books, Maimonides emphasized the tight connection between emotional state, nutrition, and sport. According to Rambam Health = acronym absorber reduces irritation food and increase movement. It is accustomed to quote this acronym.
Maimonides gave the method for a healthy life. But there is a disparity between the formula recognition and its implementation. It can be overcome with training, observing and following the golden mean. The search for inner balance or in other words: walking on the “golden path” is a moral effort to which every person is obligated to go through in his life – between the two extreme modes, the middle path is the route to mental and physical health.
The quest for the Golden Path is much more difficult in a therapeutic environment. There is a constant dialogue between the therapist and the patient, of a holder and detained, accepting and absorbing, sometimes silently and invisibly and other times loud and demanding.The therapist is required to be attentive, empathetic and emotional, but also practical and rational. Sometimes to the benefit of the patient, for the therapist to act calmly and repressing emotion.
On the one hand, the therapist must remain “open” and attentive to all silent calls, while contrarily, he must maintain his emotional self-limits. The therapist must learn the hardest of all – holding the stick from both ends, maintaining balance and discovering the Golden Path within.
Personal background: In 1994, I served as a medic in Kaplan Hospital control rooms. Challenging work and lifelong experiences that during my bachelor’s degree have signed in my memory for many years.
I notably remember the difficulty and daily coping of the medical staff and their great difficulty in maintaining the “balance.”
The central sculpture concept: The Golden Mean – This sculpture is a figurative description of the Golden path, as to moral allegory on life itself. The sculpture functions as an experiential space, as in an entertaining game that illustrates the experience of the person/therapist/ patient seeking balance. By using various architectural elements (step, path, ramp place), the user is inspired to find his or her inner balance.
The path is partially comfortable and spacious and partly narrow.
While climbing the stairs, the path challenges you, enabling you to cope with moments of concentration, inside listening, and the quest for balance.
The sculpture meets with the standard and safety requirements and is not hazardous to the user at any point, not even at its highest point.
The internal space (game expansion) is at the same level with the curb and is accessible for wheelchairs.
Materials: concrete castings and carbonate steel.
The Secondary Sculptures Concept:
1. The Golden Mean (minute) – An endless uphill and downhill circular route. 2. Body and soul – A custom symbolism of segmented sequence
Sketches from the designer table can be seen in this link