BJORK PAYS TRIBUTE TO LEE MCQUEEN

At the recent memorial for Lee McQueen at St. Paul's Cathedralin London, Björk performed a powerful version of Billie Holiday's "Gloomy Sunday". Here the acclaimed artist and musician shares with GQ.com her memories of the late designer, with whom she collaborated on the cover of her albumHomogenic, her outfit for "Who Is It?" and the video for "Alarm Call".

I felt Lee's raw connection with nature and birth and death was very refreshing. When I moved to London, being from Iceland, I sometimes found the self-importance in the UK's obsession with the decay of its empire boring, to insist the whole world is dying with them. This urban apocalyptic aesthetic is still a bit overdriving, a bit teenage really... it mostly just reveals its impotency.

Lee had so many ideas that he overcame this dilemma with fertility, raw gusto, sense of fun and courage. He was the kind of daredevil that looks death and birth straight in the eye. Lee managed to connect not only with the civilized part of his culture but somehow channel beyond that a more primordial energy, which is probably where me and him met.

Even though we were very different, we had in common taking inspiration from nature: building from there just gave you way more options! Even though we have our neighborhoods fading with pollution, we still have the energy of this solar system driving us through with more explosive power, fuel and potential than there ever was... it's all there for you and Lee knew that.

Originally published on GQ.co.uk in September 2010. Read the original here.