‘The cloud’ is not just a magical place in the sky. It’s much more down to earth. In fact,it’s a warehouse full of rows and rows of computers all providing you with data and generating massive amounts of heat in the process. 

Lucas de Ruiter sought to demystify the invisible world of the data centre through four photographic techniques, each revealing different information about its inner workings. Understanding the thermal properties of the building led to a speculative concept: what if that energy could be sustainably reused to heat a spa? With aesthetics inspired by the centre itself, this bathhouse invites visitors to experience the physicality of the cloud by submerging themselves in its steamy heat.

Digital photography. To show the space where this photo-series takes place and all its details and to give context to the rest of the images.

 

Thermal Imaging. This technique allows you to see heat. It works because things that are hot radiate waves that are almost like light and there for are able to be photographed. The hotter the object more energy it releases,

so the brighter the spot the hotter it is. The data-center actually only exist to host and cool down computers, so here we can see how these servers produce heat and how they are being cooled.

Photogrammetry. It is a technique that uses images taken from different perspectives of the same object to reconstruct a 3D model it. It is the same as your eyes work, you have two of them so you can estimate depth. This technique uses hundreds of eyes to gave you a completely understand the space its looking at.

This is done so I can measure how big everything is. What the shape of the building is to accurately recreate a 3D model which than is used for creating a simulation and designing other things off it.

Computational Fluid Dynamics. Because I cant stick my camera’s inside every pipe of the data-center I need to use this technique to visualise the its inner workings. This technique simulates how air or water flows through a space and transports heat.

Below you see the servers blasting out hot air in the rooms. This is heat is converted into water, pumped through pipes to the roof where it is expelled by air-conditioning units.