Story of Kotilo

Oulu’s Children Cultural Centre has operated at Cultural Centre Valve since 2003. Children’s culture professionals have lovingly developed the operations, especially in the fields of literary art and film education.  

A dedicated space for children’s culture has been dreamed about for years, and Kotilo is the end result of long development work. Kotilo came about along with the European Capital of Culture year and will open its doors on the Central Library Saari’s fourth floor in January of 2026. 

Towards 2026 

The establishment of the new children’s cultural centre was launched with a City Council decision in January of 2020. The first application to be the European Capital of Culture in 2026 was delivered in May of 2020 – in the application the children’s cultural centre was called STREAM, and it was planned to be located in the Oulu City Library. 

The personnel of the Oulu Children’s Cultural Centre have participated in the design of the European Capital of Culture for years before the application was sent, ensuring that the perspective of children’s culture has been a significant part of the Capital of Culture programme. The new children’s culture centre is one of the most visible children’s culture projects of Oulu’s Capital of Culture year. 

Kotilo gets its name 

The name of the new children’s culture centre was chosen by children. Over two hundred children from Oulu between ages 4–12 participated in naming workshops and voting. The name of the new children’s culture centre was revealed at the Oskari Gala in November of 2024. Adults participating in the project were impressed by the reasonings behind the name Kotilo. 

Kotilo includes the words “koti” (Fin. home) and “ilo” (Fin. joy). The words bring happiness and safety. 

Kotilo’s concept 

Children’s Cultural Centre Kotilo’s concept and operational plan were created in 2023. The concept’s essential actions are the development of the partnership model and the residency artist model: the goal is to ensure that alternating partners and residency artists will participate in content creation. 

In 2024, Oulu was chosen into the UNESCO Creative Cities Network for media art. Media art is one of Kotilo’s specializations alongside literary art and film education. The new facilities include high-quality audio and video equipment that enable presenting media art. 

However, the Children’s Cultural Centre’s most important task is to create opportunities for children and youth to experience art and culture, as well as create art themselves. We want children to participate in developing our operations even more through the Cultural Agent group. At Kotilo, children are encouraged to express themselves creatively and present their own ideas. The ideology of art education is based on experiences and experiential learning. 

Children’s culture specialist and awarded operator 

Oulu Children’s Cultural Centre has worked as a national developer especially in the fields of film and literary art education, culture curricula, and art education for over twenty years. It is one of the founders of the Association of Children’s Culture in Finland. 

The Children’s Cultural Centre has done trailblazing work to promote children’s culture in Oulu, but also nationally and internationally. Along the years, the Centre’s development work has received multiple awards: 

  • The Centre’s film school has received the Oulu International Children and Youth Film Festival’s Better World Award in 2024. The award is granted to a person, association or community distinguished in the field of children and youth film. 

  • Oulu’s Council for People with Disabilities awarded the Centre’s film school as Oulu’s Most Disability-Friendly Operator in 2024. 

  • In 2022, the Kirsi Kunnas Award of WSOY and WSOY Literary Foundation was awarded posthumously to the author-poet Jukka Itkonen. The tribute’s 10 000 € award money was directed to Valve’s literary art school for promoting, supporting and advancing children’s poetry. In the spring of 2026, the award money will become visible when an experiential exhibition depicting Jukka Itkonen’s poetry opens at Children’s Culture Centre Kotilo. 

  • The Centre’s film school received the Lapsenpäivä Award in 2019. The award is Finland’s Ministry of Education’s and Ministry of Culture’s recognition for the promotion of children’s art and education.  

  • The Saareen travelling exhibition of the Lumotut sanat Festival received the Finnish Institute for Children’s Literature’s Onnimanni Award in 2013. The award is granted to a person or community distinguished in promoting children and youth literature.