“I’ve been talking about environmentalism for the last 20 years, about green energy and solar power and how technology is what’s going to help us collaborate with nature in a non-violent, amicable, collaborative way.” – Björk
Directed by Andrew Thomas Huang, The Gate features Björk in a surreal, natural landscape, wearing an intricate costume designed by Alessandro Michele for Gucci, with a headpiece by James Merry. The visuals combine high fashion with digital art, creating a look that feels both alive and otherworldly.
In the video, Björk appears almost alien, using a wound in her chest to create an orb of love. This act of creation shows love as something tangible and almost technological, echoing sci-fi themes of new life and consciousness. The mix of organic (the wound) and digital (the orb) suggests a future where technology could affect our emotions.
The landscape at the video’s beginning merges ancient and advanced elements, imagining a world where technology and nature coexist. This concept reflects “reworlding”, a creative approach in science fiction that builds new worlds to challenge conventional ways of thinking.
Collaboration and creative process
The video's computer-generated opening scene was inspired by The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time and was created using special effects software. Zbrush made the shell-like shapes in the sky, Maya Paint Effects shaped the glowing grass, and After Effects put everything together. In the second part, there's a fantastical sci-fi dance with motion capture footage of dancer Leo Morimune, combined with computer-made characters crafted in VFX software Houdini.
Björk’s otherworldly dress was created by Italian fashion designer Alessandro Michele during their time as creative director for Gucci. It’s made from five metres of iridescent PVC, three metres of shimmering PVC strips and 20 metres of flowing crêpe de chine, silk jersey and lurex organza, giving it a striking metallic shine.
Björk describes the dress as "a stubborn light beam of hope" amidst "a lot of darkness." It took 550 hours to make, with 320 hours dedicated to the intricate pearl embroidery. The metallic and reflective elements suggest a futuristic, cybernetic feel, while the gown’s flowing, plant-like design creates an organic connection to nature.
To bring this vision to life in the music video, special effects company Wolf & Crow developed a dynamic rig system that added shimmering wings to computer-generated dancers. The avatar, designed by Andrew Thomas Huang, was animated using motion capture footage of dancer Leo Morimune.
“The prism design was inspired in part by seraphim wings, photonic crystals, origami and glass sculptures, and conversations with creative director James Merry and Björk about toroids, 4D spheres, and kundalini diagrams. The prism itself was created by VFX lead Adam Swaab at Wolf & Crow, who developed the look and motion in Houdini. It was important to me that the prism felt like a pure light harnessed into a churning configuration of complex robotic machinery: tangible like solid refractive glass yet also liquid shape-shifting and dynamic.” – Director Andrew Thomas Huang
On designing the White Orchid headpiece
“Some of the visual ideas Björk had were concerning kundalini (divine feminine energy) – the twin snakes of energy winding up the body and opening the chakras as they go. The white headpiece was an attempt to mimic that sort of winding, intertwined energy crowning the head, but crossed with a white lotus-type lightness, like some sort of alien orchid.” – Björk creative director James Merry
The Gate concept drawings
Early designs for the video’s headpiece were inspired by organic and animal forms like moths, jellyfish and corals. The pieces that Bjork creative director James Merry ended up using were more floral and anatomical – orchid-like, alien, sensual.
“Björk's headpieces usually stem from a specific set of references, ideas, textures or colours that she instinctively feels for each project. Over the years we've developed a really beautiful, telepathic shorthand. It's the most special creative relationship and friendship I could ever imagine.” - Björk creative director James Merry
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Collection
Not in ACMI's collection
Previously on display
27 April 2025
ACMI: Gallery 4
Credits
Collection metadata
ACMI Identifier
197177
Curatorial section
The Future & Other Fictions → Story → S1: Concept Development Narrative → Bjork 'The Gate'