The Cloud is a sacral place of water and sun, a funtional landscape withstanding harsh weather through modulation. Topotek 1’s proposal for LAGI 2025 adopts locally known techniques and materials to generate resilient clean energy and water for the Village of Marou.

A 1×1 meter grid scales organically and forms a system both structural and adaptable. North-facing elevations support a tessellated solar skin, generating 75kW. A series of translucent ampoules located where stormwater channels converge serve as elevated reservoirs, using gravity to assist both collection and passive distribution. 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 flexible bamboo structure only minimally, as it is entirely permeable, and the PV panels are oriented to minimise uplift wind just passes through. Thirdly, water is stored in portable bladders which can be rolled up and stored when not needed. 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.