SYNCHRONICITY 2008
NO HEAR, NO SEE
As an antithetical commentary on monumentality in architectural vision, these clouds are composed of a swarm of crystalline structures; they are coated in photocatalytic titanium dioxide, creating a complex set of surfaces that respond to ambient daylight. The clouds effectively absorb and neutralise nitrogen oxides (NOx) and volatile organic compounds (VOCs), the leading contributors to low-lying smog in cities. The substrate is grown, photosynthesized or polymerized, rather than assembled, using minimal material.
Floating in the smog layer above the city's main traffic ways, the clouds are photo-sensitive sponges. They are tethered to the ground via stainless steel poles, and move freely with the wind. Once released over traffic ways, the nebulae are transparent and subtle in the atmosphere, appearing and receding from view.
Invisible processes increasingly structure architectural space; wireless networks, electromagnetic surveillance, rfid tagging, photochemical processes, radioactive forensic traces. Following a new functionalism in architecture, the clouds are visible expressions of invisible things.
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