Andrew Thomas Huang directs a brilliantly arresting promo for Björk's Ancestress, exploring the idea of death and the rituals we partake in at the end of our loved one's lives, and pays homage to Björk's mother, who passed away in 2018.

In stark contrast to the hypnotic, fungi-inspired video for her previous release, this concept is a visualisation of catharsis, a goodbye that only Björk - and her creative collaborators - could create, something raw yet breatktakingly abstract and artistic.

She leads a funeral procession of mourners through amazing Icelandic landscapes, her face shrouded by a veil, establishing a tone and atmosphere which is virtually operatic. For Huang, who has memorably collaborated with Björk on several videos, including Mutual Core and The Gate, this sees him forego use of VFX for an entirely cinematic approach, but with its use of colour, costume, choreography and sheer scale this is still so characteristically his work. 

Upon release, Björk put out an Instagram post about her struggle with attending funerals, and how her idea of rituals have always been different to tradition. 

"When the soul sets off, it needs to be outside so there is room for how enormous it becomes when it merges with the elements," she says.

This video represents an idealistic send-off from her own perspective, and is heart-wrenchingly beautiful in every way. Truly outstanding work.