Exhibition "City in the Cloud – Data on the Ground"

The GeodataService Munich is honoured to be part of the current exhibition „City in the Cloud – Data on the Ground“ of the Architecture Museum of the Technical University of Munich in the Pinakothek der Moderne. The exhibition will run from October 16, 2025 to March 8, 2026. It explores the influence of digital data and its infrastructures on the built environment and focuses on a range of examples, from lithium mining in Chile to the construction of submarine cable networks and data centres, and the use of data in urban planning and development. This exhibition combines architecture, digital technologies, and innovative concepts to illustrate challenges and opportunities introduced by the digital age.

In today’s fast-paced world, Urban Digital Twins have emerged as a pivotal instrument for comprehending and influencing the complex dynamics of urban environments. The participation of the Digital Twin Munich in this exhibition provides a unique opportunity to present the capabilities of the project to a broad audience. By visualizing real-world data and integrating it into artistic and architectural concepts, we demonstrate how spatial data serves as a foundation for innovative planning approaches and real-world applications that already exist in the City of Munich.

In collaboration with the Vienna-based office 3e8.Studio, an interactive installation called “Data Soil” was created. In a darkened room, data layers are artistically animated as constellations of glowing points and projected onto a white sand surface. Visitors can experience firsthand how spatial data influences urban planning in two different modes. In the “Exploration Mode,” users can navigate through various datasets and access background information about the data. The "Story Mode" facilitates a more profound exploration of four thematic domains through interactive narratives.

The “Intro” explains the origins, principles, and data foundations of the Digital Twin Munich. “Explosive Legacies” illustrates how current and historical geodata interact to improve safety, using the specific example of explosive ordnance disposal by the communal real estate service in the Department of Communal Services.  “Cooling the City” addresses Munich’s response to rising temperatures due to climate change and highlights the work of the Department of Urban Planning, the Department of Climate and Environmental Protection, and the Department of Health. The final story, “The Accessible City,” focuses on urban mobility and accessibility, showing how the Department of Mobility uses data-driven approaches in its work. This interactive experience fosters an understanding of the complexity of urban systems and inspires reflections on the future of our cities.

The exhibition “City in the Cloud – Data on the Ground” exemplifies how art and science can merge to open up new perspectives on urban challenges. We are proud that our data and technologies are not only informative but also inspiring. In collaboration with architects and artists, we demonstrate how geospatial data contributes to the creation of aesthetic and functional urban spaces.

We would like to thank the Architecture Museum of TUM for the opportunity to participate in this pioneering exhibition. This collaboration demonstrates how interdisciplinary approaches can generate new ideas and solutions that benefit both science and art.

Korbinian Kringer

GeodataService Munich, City of Munich