Björk’s Rebirth
She rediscovers love in "The Gate"
Although Björk’s ninth studio album Utopia hasn’t yet arrived, the Icelandic singer/songwriter has released its lead single “The Gate,” which shares a co-writing credit with Arca, an avant-pop DJ and producer. The song is everything you’d expect from Björk: personally emotional, haunting, and awe-inspiring. An ethereal and eye-popping music video from director Andrew Thomas Huang accompanies the single and it perfectly matches Björk’s deeply mood-driven song.
The video features the art singer emerging from light like a butterfly from a cocoon. She then gives her light to a number of other neon-colored figures that dance and morph into each other, symbolizing transformation and rebirth. It seems that Björk might be speaking to her past relationship with artist Matthew Barney, who is best known for his avant-garde film series, The Cremaster Cycle.
The pair broke up in 2013 and Björk’s 2015 album Vulnicura reflects on that heartbreaking relationship. And with Utopia, it seems that she’s exploring what it’s like to move on from the past, especially with her lyrics:
My healed chest wound.
Transformed into a gate.
Where I receive love from
Where I give love from.
The gown Björk wears in the video was made exclusively for her by Gucci. The intricate dress, by Alessandro Michele, took approximately 550 hours to make and more that 300 hours to embroider. Below is a video of the making of the gown. It’s almost as fascinating to watch as the singer herself.
