festivals
JAN
festivals It’s all happening in Reykjavík City the world’s most northerly capital!
Rainbow Reykjavík
Dark Music Days
Reykjavík City is a hotbed of activity all year round with a remarkable number of annual festivals and seasonal events attracting countless festivalgoers and media attention from around the world.
Late January 2015 heralds the start of the 4th annual Rainbow Reykjavik LGBT Winter Festival in Reykjavik. The program offers a mixture of nature, activities, culture, cuisine, music & nightlife.
The Dark Music Days festival is one of the highlights of the winter season and an increasingly popular event on the Icelandic festival calendar. Hosted by the Society of Icelandic Composers in collaboration with Iceland’s finest performers, the festival showcases the best contemporary music Iceland has to offer.
Apart from the city’s superb official events, such as the Winter Lights Festival and Culture Night, there’s also a diversity of critically acclaimed art festivals, film festivals, design events, fabulous fan-fests and music festivals, celebrating everything from the arrival of summer, to the city’s wealth of fascinating culture.
Rainbow Reykjavik - colourful, cool & charismatic!
Be it art, music, theatre or sport, there’s always a hip or wholesome event happening in town!
Be captivated by new Icelandic compositions at the Dark Music Days festival!
For more information on festivals or venues in Reykjavík check www.visitreykjavik.is
#reykjavikloves
www.rainbowreykjavik.com
www.darkmusicdays.is
JAN
FEB
Reykjavík International Games
Winter Lights Festival
The Reykjavik International Games, invites athletes from all over the world to participate in a variety of different sporting events and competitions in Reykjavík’s superb Valley of Sports in Laugardalur.
The Winter Lights Festival is an annual celebration of light and culture, with a special emphasis on illuminating those long days of darkness with a collection of sparkling and visually stunning events. The entire city radiates with life, light and energy during this spectacular festival, which each year features a number of sensational new lightart installations.
Catch a healthy dose of sports fever at the next Reykjavík International Games
Be amazed by the dramatic interplay of darkness and light at the next Winter Lights Festival!
www.rig.is
www.vetrarhatid.is
FEB
FEB
Stockfish
Sónar Music Festival
Iceland’s professional filmmakers’ associations are pleased to introduce Stockfish – Reykjavík World Cinema Festival. A wide array of the most prominent, award-winning films from around the globe will be introduced to Icelandic audiences, and a special focus will be given to contemporary Icelandic cinema. Stockfish is the main platform where the domestic and international film communities come together, fostering a co-operation and collaboration between all key institutions within the Icelandic film industry.
Sónar Reykjavík is intimate. The festival portrays how a prestige brand can redefine itself in smaller locations and venues. The concert house, Harpa, and the joy of music are a stark contrast against the Icelandic winter and the arctic darkness outside. Major Lazer, James Blake, Jon Hopkins, Ryuichi Sakamoto, GusGus, Ásgeir and Ólafur Arnalds are just a few of those who have have performed at Sónar Reykjavík so far - where you’ll find established & up and coming talent from Iceland’s vibrant music scene take stage amongst the international headliners.
“Our aim is offer opportunities to connect with the creative community in Iceland, which has been quite successful internationally for years now. By bringing high quality films and guests to the festival, we can create an international dialog and a strong platform in Reykjavik for such exchanges.” – Friðrik Þór Friðriksson, filmmaker.
Do not miss over 60 bands, solo artist and DJs take stage at one of Europe’s most unique concert venues.
www.bioparadis.is
www.sonarreykjavik.com
HOMA 176
FEB MAR
MAR
Food & Fun
DesignMarch
With extraordinary culinary talent, a selection of quality Icelandic ingredients combined with countless adventures in the great outdoors and the chance to experience Reykjavík’s world famous nightlife, the Food and Fun festival mixes a variety of exciting elements to create the ultimate recipe for fun. The essential component of the festival involves world-renowned chefs collaborating with Reykjavik’s finest restaurants, and as an extra serving of food and fun, chefs compete to create a three-course meal using Icelandic ingredients exclusively.
DesignMarch is Iceland’s most significant annual design festival. From fashion to furniture, architecture to food design, the festival showcases the best in Icelandic design, alongside some exciting international names too. For four days, Reykjavík is transformed into a venue for numerous shows, talks, exhibitions and other events.
Discover Iceland’s innovative design scene at the DesignMarch event!
Get your fill of great food and fantastic fun at the next Food & Fun Festival!
www.foodandfun.is
www.designmarch.is
MAR APR
MAR
Reykjavík Fashion Festival The Reykjavík Fashion Festival is a four-day extravaganza of Icelandic fashion design, with impressive seasonal collections, introduced by Iceland’s most prominent, provocative and skilled designers. The new home of the festival is Harpa - the award winning music hall and conference centre in the heart of Reykjavík City.
Reykjavík Folk Music Festival
The Icelandic Music Experiments
The Reykjavík Folk Festival is a three-day musical feast celebrating the diversity and breadth of the Icelandic folk music scene. The festival showcases artists of all ages, where you can listen to the spellbinding musical outpourings of contemporary bands and also be transported back in time to listen to the wonderful soundtrack of times gone by.
The Icelandic Music Experiments festival has been the main musical outlet for new bands in Iceland since 1982. The festival takes place over five nights, with four semi-final events followed by a grand finale. Throughout the years, I.M.E. has proven to be a milestone event for many promising new bands in Iceland.
Listen to spellbinding musical tales of woe and wonder at the Reykjavík Folk Music Festival!
See the best new bands battle it out at the Icelandic Music Experiments!
Step into our creative scene and be a part of Iceland’s biggest fashion event!
www.rff.is
www.folkfestival.is
www.musiktilraunir.is
APR
APR
Reykjavík Blues Festival
Tectonics Reykjavík Festival
The Reykjavík Blues Festival gives young and promising blues artists the chance to perform with legends from both sides of the Atlantic in some of the most unique jam sessions in the Northern Hemisphere.
The annual Tectonics Reykjavík Festival is cutting edge when it comes to new music. It is presented by the Iceland Symphony Orchestra and curated by conductor Ilan Volkov at Harpa Concert Hall. The festival brings together local and international artists and features programs with diverse new music as well as explorations of improvisation, interdisciplinary collaboration and experimental performance. The festival, which is also held in Glasgow and Adelaide, takes over four halls in Harpa and invades many of the informal public spaces of the state-of-the-art concert hall.
Let those emotive blue tones of music move you at the Reykjavík Blues Festival!
Art Without Borders
Reykjavík Shorts&Docs
Art Without Borders is one of the biggest outsider art festivals in Europe and is held annually around the country. It celebrates diversity and promotes the art of those with disabilities. The festival emphasizes on the breaking down of barriers between different people, by facilitating cooperation amongst artists with different backgrounds.
Voted by readers of Movie Maker Magazine as one of Top Five Coolest Short Film Festivals in the World 2013, Reyjavík Shorts&Docs Festival is Iceland’s main film festival devoted to short features and documentaries. The festival allows guests to get acquainted with a range of exceptional documentaries and short films. See you at the Reykjavík Shorts&Docs Festival 3.– 9.th April 2014 in Bíó Paradís.
See the power of art in action at the Art Without Borders Festival!
See you at the Reykjavík Shorts&Docs Festival at Bíó Paradís!
Give your senses a pleasant surprise by sampling the amazing breadth of new and exciting music. www.blues.is
www.tectonicsfestival.com
www.listin.is
www.shortsdocsfest.com
APR
APR
EVE Fanfest
Children‘s Culture Festival
EVE Fanfest is an exciting annual weekend event inviting countless fans from across the world to celebrate and share their passion for EVE - the largest science fiction multiplayer online game in the world.
Children’s culture, culture for children and culture with children. These are the three main aspects of Reykjavík Children’s Culture Festival, taking place around the first day of summer.
Taking place in Reykjavík’s award winning concert hall, Harpa, the event offers fans the opportunity to meet each other in the real world and take part in some fantastic tournaments, attend keynote speeches, parties, round tables, concerts and multiple thrilling reveals. Created by CCP Games in Reykjavík, EVE is a game of discovery and adventure, set in an epic virtual universe 35,000 years in the future.
Join countless Capsuleers at the top of the world, for a weekend of real-life fun and adventure!
During this week-long celebration schools, kindergartens, music and art schools, libraries, museums, theatres and other cultural institutions open their doors and offer various exciting programmes of glittering events, performances, concerts and exhibitions, all free of charge for children and their families. The festival also places an emphasizes on participation, focusing on the child as the artist taking part in theatre workshops, circus, visual arts, storytelling, music, film, puppetry, creative sustainability, dance activities and more.
Be inspired by the imaginative power of youth and marvel at their vibrant creations! fanfest.eveonline.com
www.barnamenningarhatid.is
MAY JUN
MAY
Festival of Electronic Arts
Reykjavík Arts Festival
The RAFLOST Festival of Electronic Arts provides an annual boost to the grassroots of both Icelandic and foreign electronic arts. It also introduces the past, present and future of electronica.
Reykjavík Arts Festival is an international, multi-disciplinary festival with a special focus on new commissions and the creative intersection of the arts. For two weeks every year it presents performances and exhibitions of contemporary and classical works to the widest possible audience in major cultural venues and unconventional space throughout the city. Since its inception in 1970, Reykjavík Arts Festival has invited artists from all parts of the globe to perform and exhibit their work at the festival, becoming a catalyst for the creation of new works and a major force in the development of cultural diversity in Iceland.
The RAFLOST festival is aims to stimulate the Reykjavik electronic art scene, students of the Art Academy, the DIY computer and electronics hacker community and experimental organisations like S.L.Á.T.U.R. and LornaLab. Also, international artists and students have participated in the festival from the beginning, creating a valuable link for global/ local developments.
The festival takes place in late May and early June each year. The festival is dedicated to those using electricity and electronic equipment in their artistic creations, regardless of style or genre.
www.raflost.is
www.artfest.is
JUN
JUN
Festival of the Sea
17th of June – National Day
The Festival of the Sea is an important celebration of Icelandic cultural heritage and serves as an annual reminder of how integral the fishing industry is to the history, economy and people of Iceland. Offering lots of fun for the whole family, the festival invites everyone to join in and take part in a diverse and entertaining programme of events down at Reykjavík’s West Harbour in Grandagarður.
Since 1944, the National Day of Iceland has been celebrated annually on June 17th to commemorate Iceland’s declaration of independence from Denmark and the formation of the Republic of Iceland. This date became the official holiday because it’s the birthday of Jon Sigurdsson, Iceland’s prominent leader in the historical Icelandic Independence Movement.
Get an insight into Iceland’s maritime past at the Festival of the Sea!
The National Day celebrations are an outdoor festival in the city centre. The programme starts in the morning with the Icelandic government´s National Day ceremony but in the afternoon and evening there is family oriented entertainment, parades, concerts, outdoor play sets, variety shows and street happenings.
Celebrate the spirit and nature of Iceland at the National Day festivities on June 17th!
www.hatidhafsins.is
www.17juni.is
JUN
JUN
Viking Festival
Secret Solstice
During this festival, countless modern day Vikings from different nations get together with hoards of Icelandic Vikings for a weekend of merrymaking, traditional crafts and staged Viking battles. Since 1995 the Viking Village in Hafnarfjörður (a beautiful district of Reykjavík) has been the annual playground of this festival, which celebrates various aspects of Viking culture.
Secret Solstice is an Icelandic music festival that‘s being held for the first time on the 20th22nd of June 2014. The festival features over a hundred artists both local and international from a various array of genres. It showcases both established artists as well as exciting up-and-coming talent over the course of three days in the 24 hour midnight sun during the summer solstice.
Join in the Viking fun and celebrate our fascinating cultural heritage!
Among the artist playing are the legendary Bristol trip hop duo Massive Attack and French indie star Woodkid. On top of the already impressive lineup there are more artists to be announced so stay tuned!”
www.fjorukrain.is/en
www.secretsolstice.is
JUL
Ingólfshátíð Viking Festival For three days in July Reykjavík’s Hljómskálagarður Park is impressively transformed from modern to medieval as the Einherjar Vikings of Reykjavík host, in great spirit and authenticity, the new annual Ingólfshátið Viking Festival.
Join Vikings from all over the world to enjoy a weekend of wonderful festivities and to celebrate the fascinating cultural heritage of the Vikings!
www.visitreykjavik.is/ingolfshatid-viking-festival
AUG
Reykjavík Jazz Festival
The Reykjavík Bacon Festival
The annual Reykjavik Jazz Festival is fast becoming one of the most prestigious events on the international jazz scene. The festival hosts performances in a variety of styles including contemporary, traditional, and the avant-garde, and features a number of acclaimed international artists as well as the best from Iceland’s pool of jazz talent.
The Reykjavik Bacon Festival is held annually in the heart of Reykjavík City in cooperation the Blue Ribbon Bacon Festival in Des Moines, Iowa – the hosts of the biggest bacon fest in the world. On this tasty day, fans of bacon are invited to follow their noses to Skólavörðustígur High Street (home of the Reykjavík Bacon Festival) and sample a wide variety of bacon and bacon inspired treats.
Get all jazzed up at the next Reykjavík Jazz Festival!
Join a small army of Icelandic pork fans and sample a feast of delightful bacon treats!
www.reykjavikjazz.is
www.reykjavikbeikonfestival.is
AUG
AUG
Reykjavík Pride
Reykjavík Culture Night
This colourful event brings tens of thousands of people into the city centre to show solidarity and have fun with the gay community in Reykjavík. People of all genders: friends, relatives, and a fast growing number of tourists, all come together, to celebrate and support universal human rights. The event, takes place annually in early August, is and features a number of spectacular events, ranging from concerts, dances and exhibitions, all of which culminate at the great Pride Parade - the festival’s crowning event.
Culture Night is a spectacular annual event on the city calendar and marks the start of the cultural year, when museums, theatres and other cultural institutions launch their annual programme of events. Each year thousands of residents and guests share in a delightful day of fun, food and festivities, all topped-off with a sensational evening of music and fireworks.
Experience an exciting variety Icelandic arts and culture on Reykjavík Culture Night!
Enjoy a sensational day out in Reykjavík at the largest-small-Pride in the world!
www.reykjavikpride.com
www.menningarnott.is
AUG SEP
SEP
Reykjavík Dance Festival
Lókal Int’l Theater Festival
Reykjavík Dance Festival is a staging of new approaches to dance and choreography, created with choreographers from both here in Iceland and abroad.
The festival presents quirky, strippeddown, edgy performances complimented with storytelling and the use of both out-ofdate and state-of-the-art technology. With performances by up-and-coming theatremakers from Norway, Finland, Canada, Belgium and Iceland, the festival introduces cutting-edge drama to local audiences.
RDF is a choreography of people, a festival of dancing just as much as it is a festival of spectating.
Dance. Make. Say. Think. Dance is what it does.
For further information on the programme and tickets, please visit the festival’s official website.
Reykjavík Int’l Film Festival A major independent film event designed to enrich local cinema culture with international ground-breaking films, and to present Icelandic filmmaking to a larger audience. Now in its 11th edition, RIFF is one the highest attended festivals in the country, a showcase for new talent and the home of the Golden Puffin.
“My experience was fantastic. I am very happy to have had this experience and to have met so many cool people interested in films, music, literature, elves, and the many mysteries of human nature. Thank you!” - Jim Jarmusch
www.reykjavikdancefestival.is
www.lokal.is
www.riff.is
OCT NOV
NOV
Moorland
The Young Art Festival
The Moorland International Children’s Literature Festival is one of the city’s trademark events for children. Taking place every other year in the Nordic House and other locations in Reykjavik, the festival events include readings, workshops, seminars and art exhibitions for both adults and children. All events are free of charge.
Unglist - The Young Art Festival plays a major role in expanding and boosting various aspects of art and youth culture in Iceland. The event combines a diversity of activities including dance competitions, music, drama, improvisation, fashion exhibitions and uninhibited works of visual art and poetry.
The festival has a diverse audience ranging from children and families to scholars and academics.
Bring your friends and family to experience the thriving diversity of youth art and culture!
Iceland Airwaves Iceland Airwaves is a critically acclaimed international music festival showcasing the hottest new international bands and all the best up-and-coming Icelandic artists. The event started out as a one-off gig in an airplane hangar back in 1999, with only five bands performing, but has now established itself as one of the hippest events on the international music festival calendar, attracting thousands of visitors from around the world.
Add this musical adventure of a lifetime to your bucket list!
www.myrin.is
www.unglist.is
www.icelandairwaves.is
OCT DEC
NOV DEC
Imagine Peace Tower
December in Reykjavík
Yoko Ono’s Imagine Peace Tower is an extraordinary dedication to John Lennon and his vision of world peace. Installed on Viðey Island on the 9th October 2007, this stunning work of art is lit annually on John‘s birthday. The powerful super beam of light generated reaches approximately 400 metres into the sky on a clear night and continues to illuminates the skies above Reykjavík each night until the anniversary of John’s death on December 8th. Every year Yoko invites guests on a complimentary ferry trip to the island to take part in the beautiful illumination ceremony.
Our wonderful Christmas season, crowned regularly with displays of enchanting Northern Lights, is one of city’s main winter attractions, but it’s not just those other worldly illuminations and extravagant decorations getting all the attention. The fact that Iceland has not one, but thirteen Santa Clauses (Yule Lads) is a little gem of cultural knowledge that’s been celebrated and promoted as part of the Reykjavík Christmas City initiative since the year 2010. In addition to the Christmas markets and various traditional Christmas events, such as the annual lighting of the Oslo Christmas Tree and the wonderful concerts, a number of beautiful locations across the city are transformed every year into dedicated Advent areas, where the majority of culture-inspired events and activities take place.
Share in an extraordinary moment of PEACE in Reykjavík City. Tours of the Tower and Viðey Island are available from October 9th- December 8th
Come on over, be inspired and get all wrapped up in a magical Reykjavík Christmas!
www.imaginepeace.com
christmas.visitreykjavik.is
MAY The first day of summer
the neighbourhood festivals Garðabær APRIL Garðabær Jazz Festival
A celebration of summer with a parade and various entertainment.
Children‘s Culture Festival A whole week of cultural events for children of all ages.
Kópavogur Culture Festival
A music festival for young people.
A week of diverse cultural events where guests can enjoy the harvest of the winter’s cultural work.
JUNE Midsummer Day Festival Garðabær
JUNE The Kópavogur Jazz & Blues Festival
A local association of visual arts exhibits visual art out-doors, along with musical performances and all kind of happenings.
NOVEMBER Midwinter Music Evening Garðabær A pop/jazz musical concert indoors at Garðatorg center in Garðabær and local artists exhibit visual art.
Hafnarfjörður APRIL Bright Days Annual Art and Culture Festival.
JUNE Viking Festival Annual festival with famous Viking market and festivities.
Annual Seamen‘s Day Annual festivities dedicated to Icelandic seamen.
DECEMBER Christmas Village A Christmas market in the heart of Hafnarfjordur.
Kjós JULY Joy in Kjos A family festival where farmers offer guests to their home, history and cultural tours and more.
SEPTEMBER Food festival in Kjos Chefs conjure a delicious meal with ingredients straight from the farms in Kjos.
A local music festival with international and Icelandic jazz & blues musicians performing.
NOVEMBER The Kopavogur Crafts & Design Day Local galleries display crafts & design.
Mosfellsbær JUNE MúsMos Mosfellsbær A music festival for young people.
AUGUST Í túninu heima Mosfellsbær A town festival with music, markets, art exhibitions and sport activites.
Can’t Find the Venue? Or do you need tips on what to explore in Reykjavik? Come visit us! The Official Tourist Information Centre in Reykjavik. Visit Reykjavik, Adalstraeti 2, 101 Reykjavik.
For more information: www.visitreykjavik.is
Published by Visit Reykjavík Íslenska 09/14
Kópavogur