The Cloud is a sacral place of water and sun: built with locally known techniques, from materials present on the island, and withstanding the harsh weather by embracing it and letting it through. Beginning with a 1×1 meter grid, it scales organically, forming a system that is both structural and adaptable. North-facing elevations support a tessellated solar skin, generating 75kW while shaping a faceted surface visible from the sea. Suspended near the high point of the plot, a series of translucent ampoules collect and store rainwater. These vessels — located where stormwater channels converge — serve as elevated reservoirs, using gravity to assist both collection and passive distribution. The water is filtered using low-tech systems and stored for year-round use. In plan, the form spirals outward, widening to host gathering, narrowing into thresholds and shaded pockets. Its growth is coral-like— incremental, responsive, and inherently local. The largest volume acts as a communal hearth, a place for oral teaching, informal gathering, and interaction.

Behind the simplicity are important reasons. Firstly, it can be built by everyone with local knowledge, only bladders and solar panels need to be brought from afar. Secondly, wind affects the structure only minimally, as it is entirely permeable, and the PV panels are oriented to minimise uplift wind just passes through. Bamboo, with its great flexibility, offers unique structural strength given the applied forces. Thirdly, water is stored in large bladders which can be rolled up and stored when not needed, making them easy to transport to the site. Additionally, their weight when filled can be used to anchor the bamboo in the ground, creating a strong bond between the solar and water structure. These drivers not only necessitate a form but also allow The Cloud it to flourish.

Aesthetically, the resulting sculpture is familiar, grounded, and rooted in its surroundings, and yet, it is also ephemeral and ever changing. Alluding to something larger and greater than what is visible, the building blocks of squares and grids dissolve into a drifting cloud, which is ever changing from perspective. Inside the structure a feeling of a temple arises, spaces that are hard to describe from the outside offer a space to interact with the forces of wind, sun, and water.