Björk brings three immersive works to Oulu exhibition

Icelandic artist Björk will present three audiovisual installations in Oulu, with the exhibition opening on Friday at the Pekuri building, Yle reports. The show is part of the Lumo Art and Tech festival and a highlight of Oulu’s 2026 cultural programme.

Two works, Ancestress and Sorrowful Soil, were composed and arranged as tributes to Björk’s mother. Oulu 2026 programme director Henri Turunen said the works convey a personal relationship and a clear sense of respect for her. Musical materials used by Björk will also be on display.

Ancestress is a cinematic work set in an Icelandic lava landscape and draws on Icelandic traditions. Sorrowful Soil uses 32 speakers, each carrying the voice of a different singer. Together, they form a choral work with Björk as soloist. Visitors can walk around the installation and listen from different positions.

The third installation, Björk Orkestral, places concert recordings in an immersive listening room built with speakers made by a Finnish manufacturer. Its multichannel sound has been mixed specifically for the Oulu space.

The exhibition was first shown last summer at the National Gallery of Iceland in Reykjavik. It will remain open in Oulu until the end of the year. Björk is also due to perform a sold-out DJ set at Tarkastamo on Sunday.

Björk began her career in 1977 with her first album, recorded entirely in Icelandic. She has released three albums as the singer of The Sugarcubes, ten solo albums and two film soundtracks. Her most-streamed song on Spotify is “Berghain”, a collaboration with Spanish singer Rosalía, with more than 187 million plays, according to Yle.