Atmospheric cloud Narrates Black Void’s multimedia stage poem
Black Void presents Cloud’s Memoir, a multimedia stage installation that merges poetic narrative with environmental data systems to explore how Earth’s atmosphere is shaped by historical and contemporary forces. Premiered at the Climate Ring in Yicang Art Museum and hosted by Swissnex, the project also features in the inaugural exhibition Luminosity Reborn at Fudan Art Museum.
The work takes the form of a poetic monologue delivered from the perspective of a cloud. Functioning as a fragmented historian, the cloud reflects on the planetary atmosphere as a record shaped by natural disasters, industrial development, war, and global economic structures. Its form, while ephemeral, becomes a medium that both retains and loses memory, subject to the erasures of wind and the inscriptions of light.
all images courtesy of Black Void
Cloud’s Atmospheric Narratives are divided into three chapters
In the First Chapter, ‘Divining the Sky,’ the project explores how cloud formations have historically been used for divination and speculation. Positioned between myth and meteorology, the cloud becomes a surface upon which human belief systems are projected. Black Void’s design team treats atmospheric conditions as both data and symbolism, shaping interpretations of fate and uncertainty. The second chapter, ‘Earthborn, Firebreath,’ traces the emergence of carbon-based gases in the atmosphere through seismic events and industrialization. Referencing events such as the eruption of Mount Tambora in 1815, the narrative personifies the generation of carbon dioxide as a geological and atmospheric process. The chapter examines the intersection of natural systems and anthropogenic emissions. Focusing on nitrate and sulfate aerosols, the third chapter, ‘Dust Fall, Feast Talk,’ follows the movement of these particles through global currents, from zones of conflict to centers of wealth. The narrative contrasts the distribution of atmospheric pollutants with social inequality, emphasizing how airborne matter infiltrates daily life, often unnoticed.
live vapor and projection merge in a multimedia performance at Yicang Art Museum
Black Void Composes Real-Time Clouds as Responsive Media
Technically, the installation integrates live cloud-making technologies, environmental controls, and audiovisual components. Indoor humidity, temperature, and airflow are manipulated to choreograph the presence and disappearance of cloud forms within the space. Thermal imaging and live data feedback link human presence to atmospheric changes, producing real-time visual responses.
Cloud’s Memoir by Black Void presents the atmosphere as a shared and politicized archive, shaped by material histories and systemic conditions. Through its spatial and performative structure, the project repositions the cloud as both a formal element and a narrative device, one that registers and reflects the ongoing transformations of the planetary environment.
the installation explores how clouds have served as omens, symbols, and data
historical eruptions and industrial growth shape the cloud’s form and memory
Cloud’s Memoir renders the invisible visible through poetic staging
a suspended vapor cloud registers human impact without permanence
Black Void positions atmosphere as a medium shaped by systemic forces
the project examines climate as a collective and uneven inheritance
real-time thermal imaging links viewers’ bodies to fluctuations in the space
wind and light act as writers and erasers across the surface of the cloud
indoor cloud-making technologies animate the atmosphere as a responsive archive
Cloud’s Memoir Performance at Climate Ring in Yicang Art Museum, Hosted by SWISSNEX
Technical Process
project info:
name: Cloud’s Memoir
artist: Black Void | @bv_blackvoid
host: Climate Ring, Yicang Art Museum, SWISSNEX
producer, writer, director: Cai Yixuan
deputy director: Qu Manning
actor: Wang Bingxu
visual director: Qu Manning
light design: Yin Tinglan
multi-media: Wang Yuanyuan
sound design: Marco Bidin, Zhou Tiange
cloud technology: SmokeGENIE
cinematography: Xie Jinchao
editing: Cai Yixuan, Wang Yuanyuan, Zhou Tairong (Chowchow)
logistics coordination: Xiao Yuhan
designboom has received this project from our DIY submissions feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication. see more project submissions from our readers here.
edited by: christina vergopoulou | designboom
The post black void frames cloud installation as narrative tool in multimedia atmospheric performance appeared first on designboom | architecture & design magazine.