100 Years Old
2018“100 years old" is an installation displaying the paradox of what is perceived as the "right" environment and lifestyle to help us achieve longevity and what based on recent researches is actually the environment that has allowed people of our time to age significantly more than others.
Our project started with the simple notion that when we are born, it means that we will also, eventually die. We were commissioned by Jerusalem Design week to make a piece about “Body Conservation” which in itself is a kind of oxymoron. Decay and deterioration are natural parts of life that we respect in their own right and from the beginning, we were convinced that technology and medical advances are maybe not the right or only approach. Intuitively we felt its much more a question of mindset and way of living. We started to investigate the subject of centenarians around the world and discovered the amazing research done by Dan Buettner with National Geographic about the Blue Zones. The Blue Zones are specific places around the world, where there is a significantly high percentage of people in the population who aged in very good health and spirit well after 100 years old. From this research came 9 principles, all referring to a simple mindset and way of life so we decide to apply them as key points for our installation.
All over the world, different communities with different heritage have managed to create a life that allowed them to age well. Although these communities live far away from each other, they all share certain values and a lifestyle that apparently helped them flourish to this honorable age. These shared values become the guidelines for building "the perfect environment to become 100 years old" through it we invite the public to contemplate on how we live today- is it possible that in spite of technology and health advances we are actually causing harm to our future wellbeing?