First of all, happy solar return, Björk! The Icelandic trailblazer turns fifty-nine today, proving that physical age doesn’t matter as long as you keep your creativity and curiosity fresh. For three decades, she’s been at the forefront of innovation across music, art, fashion, and technology. Her tour Cornucopia is just another testament to her prowess and inventive. If you missed it or would like to have something physical to remind you of it, today’s your lucky day because she’s announced the publication of Cornucopia: The Book.
Speaking on the release, Björk says: “This book documents my five-year tour, Cornucopia, designed by M/M Paris, with images shot by photographer Santiago Felipe. Before this tour, I spent a decade working with 360-degree sound and visual software in virtual reality and animation, creating Biophilia, the first app album, and later Vulnicura as a VR album. 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. 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.”
The Cornucopia tour was probably one of the biggest, most complex and elaborate projects that the Icelandic artist has embarked on. It was an ambitious live experience featuring imagery and projections by director Tobias Gremmler, performed with The Hamrahlíð Choir, alongside other musical and visual artists. She brought it to theatres and festivals across the world, from New York to Paris, to Mexico City, Tokyo, Perth, Vienna, London, San Francisco, and more.
As she explains, “This vision was realised with twenty-seven moving curtains that captured projections on different textures and LED screens, creating a digitally animated show: a modern lanterna magica for live music. I also wanted to feature bespoke instruments: a magnetic harp, an aluphone, a circular flute, and a reverb chamber, specially built with an audio architect to enhance the most intimate version of a performance — in a personal chapel.”
Cornucopia: The Book, which you can buy on Björk’s official website, is a 480-page, high-quality picture publication that chronicles that colossal tour. It has a softcover with flaps, sewn sections, printed in HUV-offset and fluorescent colours on hi-gloss paper with gloss varnish, and also includes a sixteen-page booklet.
