Described by Björk as a “sci-fi pop concert” and “digital theatre”, Björk’s Cornucopia tour enlisted the brightest minds across visual direction, sound design and instrumentation to create a groundbreaking live experience that won the Icelandic artist the Association of Independent Music’s Best Performer last year. Now, with never-before-seen photos shot by Santiago Felipe, the concert’s global journey is documented in Cornucopia: The Book, set to release November 15.
“I was deeply inspired by the idea of a fully-immersive experience, spending a spring in an Icelandic lighthouse, spreading Utopia into fully surround speakers,” Björk explains of the tour, “My intention was to bring what we had created for 21st-century VR into a 19th-century theatre – taking it from the headset to the stage.”
Running from 2019 to 2023, the five-year tour included an ambitious tech spec that seemed lifted straight out of a fairy tale: 27 moving curtains that captured projections by director Tobias Gremmler on various textures and LCD screens, a magnetic harp, circular flute and a custom-built reverb chamber. Also featured in the show was a speech by Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg in the show’s interlude before the encore, as well as production from Venezuelan artist Arca and the creative input of multi-award-winning Argentinian film director Lucrecia Martel and Parisian design agency M/M Paris.
Featuring both Icelandic songs and choral arrangements of Björk’s music, many of which reimagined from her previous Utopia album, the show aimed to go blur the lines between concert and theatre. Speaking on the show’s unique approach to storytelling, Björk described how: “throughout this tale, there is a subplot woven in: a second story of an avatar – a modern marionette who alchemically mutates, from puppet to puppet, from the injury of a heart wound to a fully healed state. I hope you enjoy it.”
The show is the latest in a radical and boundary-pushing career for the Icelandic singer, who previously produced 2011 release Biophilia, the world’s first app album, and Vulnicura in 2016, which was accompanied by bespoke VR visuals that were showcased at select venues around the world.
Take a look at the gallery below for a sneak peak inside the Cornucopia: The Book.