Created by German climate engineering firm Transsolar and Japanese firm Tetsuo Kondo Architects, Cloudscapes is the central installation in one of the most prominent spaces of the Biennale. This indoor cloud has been created in an 800 square metre room in the Venetian Arsenal by controlling the microclimate of the space in the arsenale building. The exhibit consists of a layer of artificial clouds hovering above ground level, remaining suspended above the heads of the viewers.
The Cloud is illuminated by Martin Extube linear LED luminaires and Martin Exterior 200 LED projectors. The dynamics of the lighting are controlled via a Martin Maxxyz lighting controller. The artificial cloud is produced by the visualization of nearly 100% humidity in the cloud layer through a series of Martin Professional smoke machines – Jem ZR44 Hi-Mass and Magnum 1800 – which create condensation seeds that render the cloud viable.
Transsolar proposed to create a microclimate in which a cloud can sustain itself. The aim is to provide a space where visitors can experience the characteristics of clouds on a personal level, from below, within and above. To experience the lightness of clouds, a winding system of ramps is situated in the middle of the room, allowing the viewers to feel and touch the clouds by physically entering and walking over them. This pathway aims to show all three layers of distinct climates in the room. On the ground level the air is cool and dry, while half way up the ramps, among the clouds, the air is warm and humid. Above the cloud layer, the air is hot but without moisture. By replacing pressure differences and temperature gradients, all instances of the structure offer a unique atmosphere with different qualities of light.
Architecture Biennale is being directed by Kazuyo Sejima, winner of the 2010 Pritzker Architecture Prize and a member of SANAA, one of the world’s major offices of contemporary architecture. The architecture exhibition in the Biennale is titled ‘People Meet in Architecture’.
