National Nordic Museum, located in Ballard, Washington, 6 miles north of downtown Seattle, presents an immersive art exhibition created by Jónsi (Jón Þór Birgisson), lead singer of world-famous Icelandic post-rock band Sigur Rós, which begins a European and North American tour in June.

© National Nordic Museum

Created specifically for the museum, the artwork will be the focus of Jónsi’s first museum exhibition in the United States. The exhibition runs until July 30, and highlights the natural connections between the coastal cities of Seattle and Reykjavik, which became sister cities in 1986. The Ballard neighborhood in Seattle holds a rich maritime history with Scandinavian roots. Changing environmental conditions within the gallery will engage visitors’ senses of hearing, sight and smell to transport them to the ocean.

Composed for the installation, Jónsi’s mellifluous music will be played through speakers, engulfing the room with spatialized surround sound. This audio installation, augmented by a choir composition and field recordings, simulates the experience of a wave traveling the length of the gallery. The scent of seaweed harvested from both the Pacific and North Atlantic oceans will be tinctured, distilled and dispersed through the room. The darkened gallery filled with mist and fog engages the audience’s inner visualization, while a thin strip of light overhead moves with the sound wave.

© Rafael Soldi

Since the 1990s, world-renowned interdisciplinary artist Jónsi has produced ethereal sounds through an astute aesthetic combining the minimal, the classical and the progressive. Jónsi initially gained international recognition as the lead vocalist for Icelandic experimental rock band Sigur Rós, whose unique sounds have been equated with the sublime. Jónsi’s unequivocal vocal and instrumental approach have expanded the boundaries of musical genres, rendering him one of the leading musical artists of our time.

Outside of Sigur Rós, Jónsi cultivated a latticework of other interconnected music projects, inclusive of solo works and collaborations. In 2009, he and partner Alex Somers released landmark ambient album Riceboy Sleeps, followed up in 2019 with Lost & Found. In 2018, Jónsi, Alex Somers and Paul Corley formed Liminal, whose ambient soundbath events have been hosted at art spaces across the world to high critical praise. In 2019, he formed the musical duo Dark Morph with Swedish composer Carl Michael von Hausswolf.

© National Nordic Museum

This exhibition is curated by Leslie Anne Anderson, director of collections, exhibitions and programs. The first Thursday of every month is free, and admission on other days is $20 for adults, with discounts for seniors, college students and young adults. The exhibition is closed on Monday.