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Born asBjork Gudmundsdottir
Occup.Musician
FromIceland
BornNovember 21, 1965
Reykjavik, Iceland
Age60 years
Early Life
Bjork Gudmundsdottir was born on November 21, 1965, in Reykjavik, Iceland. Her mother, Hildur Runa Hauksdottir, was an artist and environmental activist, and her father, Gudmundur Gunnarsson, was an electrician and union leader. Raised within a creative and politically aware household, she studied classical music as a child, learning piano and flute, and released a self-titled album at age 11 after a school performance led to a radio appearance and a record deal. This early start set a pattern of independence and curiosity that would define her career.

Underground Bands and The Sugarcubes
As a teenager, Bjork immersed herself in Iceland's post-punk and avant-garde scenes, performing with groups such as Tappi Tikarrass and the experimental collective Kukl. Collaborating closely with figures like Einar Orn Benediktsson, she developed a taste for boundary-pushing performance and a DIY ethic. In 1986, several collaborators formed the Sugarcubes, with Bjork sharing vocals and Thor Eldon on guitar. The band's debut single, Birthday, drew international acclaim, bringing the bright, surreal energy of Icelandic alternative music to a global audience. The Sugarcubes released several albums through One Little Indian, the independent label founded by Derek Birkett, before disbanding amicably in the early 1990s.

Solo Breakthrough
Relocating to London, Bjork began her solo career with Debut (1993), shaped with producer Nellee Hooper and contributors including Graham Massey and Marius de Vries. Mixing electronic textures with jazz, pop, and world influences, she introduced a voice and sensibility unlike any in mainstream music. She built a visual world in partnership with directors like Michel Gondry and Spike Jonze, making music videos integral to her storytelling. Post (1995) expanded her palette, with collaborators such as Tricky and Howie B, and deepened her partnership with the poet and novelist Sigurjon Birgir Sigurdsson, known as Sjon, whose impressionistic narratives threaded through songs like Isobel.

Homogenic and Artistic Consolidation
Homogenic (1997) marked a turning point, distilling volcanic beats and sweeping strings into a cohesive vision shaped in part with producer Mark Bell of LFO. The album asserted a proudly Icelandic identity while remaining thoroughly contemporary. Working with fashion designer Alexander McQueen on the era's imagery, and with video auteurs including Gondry and Chris Cunningham, she fused sound, fashion, and film into a singular aesthetic.

Film, Awards, and Vespertine
Bjork starred in Lars von Trier's Dancer in the Dark (2000), winning Best Actress at the Cannes Film Festival. The film's song I have Seen It All, co-written with von Trier and Sjon and performed with Thom Yorke, earned an Academy Award nomination. Her appearance at the Oscars in a swan dress by Marjan Pejoski became a pop culture landmark. Vespertine (2001) followed with intimate, micro-detailed production in collaboration with Matmos and harpist-composer Zeena Parkins, supported on tour by chamber ensembles and choirs, and mixed with meticulous care to feel hushed yet expansive.

Vocal Experiments and Global Rhythms
Medulla (2004) was largely constructed from voices: Bjork's own layers, Inuit throat singer Tanya Tagaq, beatboxer Rahzel, singer Mike Patton, and the distinctive presence of Robert Wyatt, among others. She next wrote the music for Matthew Barney's film Drawing Restraint 9 (2005), reflecting the pair's artistic dialogue. Volta (2007) leaned into kinetic rhythms and bold colors, with contributions from Timbaland and the singer Anohni, and supported environmental activism in Iceland, including the Nattura campaign alongside writer Andri Snaer Magnason.

Biophilia and Multidisciplinary Work
Biophilia (2011) combined album, custom-built instruments, interactive apps, and an education program used in classrooms internationally. Premiered at Manchester International Festival, the project framed music as a meeting of nature and technology. After vocal strain, Bjork underwent successful surgery in 2012, then returned to stage and museum contexts, including a 2015 Museum of Modern Art retrospective curated by Klaus Biesenbach. She expanded into virtual reality with Bjork Digital, working closely with filmmaker Andrew Thomas Huang as well as Gondry and others.

Vulnicura, Utopia, and Cornucopia
Vulnicura (2015), co-produced with Arca and the Haxan Cloak, is a raw document of heartbreak, pairing orchestral strings with glacial electronics and VR films that placed the listener inside the songs. Utopia (2017), developed with Arca, pivoted toward rebirth, foregrounding flutes and birdsong and introducing the live flute ensemble Viibra. The Cornucopia stage production, directed by filmmaker Lucrecia Martel with visual artist and mask-maker James Merry central to its look, merged advanced acoustics, choral writing, and immersive set design, underscoring her commitment to performance as total art.

Fossora and Later Work
Fossora (2022) explored grief, ecology, and grounding, influenced by the passing of her mother, Hildur Runa Hauksdottir. Built around choirs, a bass clarinet ensemble, and harsh-edged electronic rhythms, it embraced both intimacy and club energy. Collaborators included the Indonesian duo Gabber Modus Operandi, emphasizing her continued fascination with global scenes and hybrid forms.

Personal Life and Collaborations
Bjork has two children: her son, Sindri Eldon, with guitarist Thor Eldon, and her daughter, Isadora, with the American artist Matthew Barney. Family, Reykjavik's community of artists, and long-standing collaborators have remained central to her process. Across decades, she has maintained enduring creative relationships with figures like Sjon, Michel Gondry, Mark Bell, Nellee Hooper, Guy Sigsworth, Matmos, Zeena Parkins, Andrew Thomas Huang, Arca, and James Merry.

Legacy
Widely recognized for reshaping the possibilities of pop, Bjork has connected experimental sound, fashion, and moving image into a coherent, emotionally direct body of work. She has received numerous honors, including multiple BRIT Awards, the Cannes Best Actress prize, and the Polar Music Prize, and has been nominated many times at the Grammys and the Oscars. More than any single award, her legacy rests in a fearless methodology: collaboration across disciplines, constant reinvention, and a conviction that technology, tradition, and the natural world can meet inside a human voice.

Our collection contains 30 quotes who is written by Bjork, under the main topics: Witty One-Liners - Puns & Wordplay - Music - Funny - Deep.

Other people realated to Bjork: John Kricfalusi (Artist), Karin Boye (Poet), Kate Bush (Musician), Catherine Deneuve (Actress), Joshua Homme (Musician), David Morse (Actor)

30 Famous quotes by Bjork