Oulu2026 Opening Festival begins!
Get ready for an impressive lineup of experiences for all your senses.

Market stalls at the square will be open from the afternoon until late evening on Friday and Saturday. If the weather allows, the skating rink will be open.

Culture takes over Valkea

On Valkea’s Kesäkatu, thought-provoking performances will feature the voice of northern Finnish rap, Stepa, true to his own style and values; the master of atmospheric expression, Ylva Haru; and the Oulu-based band Valkea, delivering powerful alternative and indie rock.

The Belgian acrobat duo Ludo and Arsène will present a playful and daring performance on Kesäkatu, full of speed and excitement. Using ordinary ladders in extraordinary ways, they invite the audience to join in the fun. The show by the BE FLAT group is curated by Flow Productions.

In Connecting Element, a performance by Oulu Dance Center’s JoJo, dance artist Jonna Aaltonen moves and dances inspired by the people and spaces she encounters. She carries a “good vibes collector,” effortlessly sharing positive energy with those she meets.

Mantis, an excerpt from the ballet Sirkka, offers a preview of a new full-length, dark-toned ballet exploring a woman’s inner struggle between submission and strength through contrasts. The ballet is produced by Oulu’s multidisciplinary ballet production group Tenho. Folk dance ensemble Pähiät will also present excerpts from their upcoming full-length folk dance theater piece Luutarha, featuring about 20 dancers performing atmospheric folk songs and lively polska and quadrille.

Oulu indie band Projekti Plaanaoja will perform music by poet-musician Jenni Miettunen, and fifth graders from Oulu Steiner School will sing songs from the musical play Tirlittan. The stage will also host the Hilja Grönfors Trio with traditional Roma music, Alavin Group from Nivala with country and folk influences, and Vuolle Institute’s rock band Piraattirakkaus.

Celebrating its 80th anniversary, Oulu Youth Services will share its jubilee year plans, including 80 cultural climate actions highlighting youth work, young voices, creativity, and community. Rising Oulu talent Ihme will perform music that energetically and authentically blends melodic pop and rap.

The Different Backgrounds, One Oulu program introduces countries and cultures through dance and music performances and interactive workshops. Expect Thai food art, coffee culture from around the world, and face painting for children.

Art checkpoints from Sanginkontu, originally set in forests and river landscapes, will pop up in the city. Join a playful art hunt by finding photos of environmental artworks placed around Valkea. Maps are available at the Sanginkontu info point, where you can also watch videos about the creation of the artworks.

Festive-themed artworks by students of Oulu Art School will be displayed all day on Valkea’s main stage screen. There will also be dazzling circus acts, a collaborative art project open to all, and a lively flash mob by the dance department.

At Glitter Garden, festival looks reach new heights in skilled hands. Students from OSAO’s hair, beauty, and horticulture programs will beautify visitors for free with floral hair decorations and face glitter in Valkea’s second-floor elevator lobby. At Amispark, next to Valkea on Kauppurienaukio, lights flash and music plays! OSAO’s automotive and logistics students will showcase customized cars, with their creations on display all weekend.

Central Library Saari and Children’s Cultural Center Kotilo Celebrate

Central Library Saari will host a weekend-long celebration marking the opening of both Saari and the Children’s Cultural Center Kotilo. The joint opening ceremony, open to all, will take place on Saturday with speeches and coffee service. In addition to remarks from the Minister of Science and Culture Mari-Leena Talvitie, greetings will be shared by architects and facility services, and the music class from Teuvo Pakkala School will perform.

The book The Book of Oulu, created by more than 200 Oulu children together with artists, will be launched with a festive program. Designed for everyone with a childlike spirit—and especially for adults—the book reveals what Oulu looks like through children’s eyes and how they would shape the city if given the chance. Visitors can collect autographs from the young creators on the book’s title pages!

Kotilo will also open its first exhibitions. Friend’s House takes visitors on a journey through the wild city of Oulu, guided by local children’s stories, experiences, and dreams. Joel Karppanen’s interactive media artwork invites children into the layered generations of Oulu and creates a space for friendship and empathy. Visitors can leave their own messages of friendship in images, sounds, or stories. The In the Neighborhood exhibition features Johanna Ilander’s charming illustrations from The Book of Oulu. Artist interviews on Friday and Saturday will reveal the creative process behind these works.

Theater group Näytelmätykit from Oulu Art School will perform scenes about friendship that they have designed themselves. At the art disco and during Rytmikone Kasper’s beatbox show, rhythm takes over. The children’s music band Pentti Punkin Syntymäpäivät will delight the youngest audience members with energetic live performances and songs that appeal to adults as well.

Throughout the weekend, visitors can join guided tours of the renovated building. The Laituri Open Mic poetry event, organized in collaboration with Kellarikollektiivi, welcomes everyone to present their own texts—regardless of style or experience. Author and journalist Jenni Räinä, winner of the Tieto-Finlandia Prize for her nonfiction book Reunalla – Tarinoita Suomen tyhjeneviltä sivukyliltä, will lead a reading circle discussing literature connected to current themes and the Capital of Culture year. Both Laituri Open Mic and Räinä’s reading circle are part of Oulu’s Reading City campaign, aiming to make Oulu Europe’s most literate Capital of Culture in 2026.

Thought-Provoking Exhibitions Open at Oulu City Hall

The artwork Layers of the Peace Machine, combining art and technology, lives and evolves continuously through interaction with the audience—via movement, hearing, language, and cognition. Visitors become creators as their decisions influence other parts of the work and the experiences of others. The immersive piece by Ekho Collective invites participants to reflect on their own relationship with peace and peace-related issues. What emotions or images arise from memories? What could be your role in peacebuilding?

Also opening is Kiasma’s Earworm media art exhibition, featuring video works where music and sound play a significant role in atmosphere and storytelling. Through sound, these moving-image works expand into the space, creating a powerful multisensory experience.
Both exhibitions are free of charge, but visiting times must be booked in advance. Reservations can be made for up to six people at a time. Booking opens on December 1, 2025 at:
https://verkkokauppa.ouka.fi/oulu2026/

Kauppakortteli Pekuri Becomes a Stage for Play and the Oulu2026 Map

For the European Capital of Culture year, Kauppakortteli Pekuri opens an international window into the world of play and photographic art as Fotografiska Tallinn brings a photography exhibition to Finland for the first time. The group exhibition PLAY explores play both as a source of joy and as a disruptive force, showcasing moments of delight, resilience, rebellion, and connection. The exhibition, featuring works by 17 international artists, is curated by Fotografiska Tallinn’s Brand Director Jorven Viilik. Tickets are available starting at €12 (link).

During the festival weekend, visitors to Pekuri can journey through the entire Oulu2026 region. Highlights include the feel of nature along the Iijoki River, the cultural soul of Kainuu, the landscapes of Kalajokilaakso, the cultural gallop of the Bothnian Bay, the flow of stories from the Oulujoki River Valley, maritime culture along the old bootlegging routes, musical journeys through Pyhäjokilaakso, and the light of the plains accompanied by the magical hooting of owls.

At Restaurant Pekuri, performers from across the Oulu2026 area will take the stage from Friday to Sunday.

Valve Brings Art and Stories Under One Roof – Other Cultural Venues Buzz with Activity

At Cultural House Valve, visitors can step into a living cultural laboratory and get a glimpse of the festivals of 2026. The Northern Photographic Centre will showcase exhibitions such as the artist collective nabbteeri’s Fragile Mutants and Ville Rinne’s exploration of humanity’s quest to understand nature. In the Comic Gallery, Harri Filppa presents a collection of 26 works by 20 creators—perfect inspiration for those seeking new reading experiences. On Friday, Valvegalleria opens Kaikki lutviutuu (Everything Works Out) by Inka Hannula and Teemu Raudaskoski, a Tampere-based artist duo whose works are created spontaneously and simultaneously on shared canvases.

Visitors can also explore a community art travel agency and BLACK SNOW, a collaborative artwork by Tiina Vehkaperä and schoolchildren from the Oulu2026 region. Vehkaperä has also created Liiku, a light installation that will illuminate Valve’s windows throughout the weekend.

At Studio Cinema, Friday’s program features the winning music videos from the 2025 Oulu Music Video Festival. On Friday and Saturday, audiences of all ages can enjoy fairy tale and storytelling sessions by Oulu Student Theatre on the Valve stage. All weekend long, Flow Circus will present FASE, a dance-acrobatics performance where movement and acrobatics create their own world within Valve’s halls.

The EU Comes Close at the Lounge in Leskinen

The EU Lounge, opening at Oluthuone Leskinen on Friday and Saturday, offers a relaxed meeting place for European conversations. This is your chance to ask, listen, and talk about the EU in an easygoing setting—whether your thoughts are on everyday questions, the Capital of Culture year, or the future of Europe.

On both days, test your EU knowledge in the pub quiz, where everyone can join the fun, some will learn something new, and the best will be rewarded! In the evenings, Leskinen turns into a living room for Eurovision fans as nostalgic sing-along nights bring classic Eurovision hits from different decades back to life.

Trenčín, Slovakia—one of the European Capitals of Culture 2026—takes over Ihku during the Opening Festival on Friday and Saturday. The program offers a glimpse into Trenčín2026 highlights, folk-inspired music, and discussions with notable guests, including the city’s mayor.
Friday features a Trenčín-themed evening with Slovak stand-up comedy, Oulu x Trenčín Fusion Mocktails blending Nordic and Central European flavors, and a DJ set to close the night. Saturday brings puppet theater and conversations offering a Slovak perspective on Finland.

Kiruna2029 reaches for Europe’s northernmost Capital of Culture at Jumpru Pub and Kaarlenholvi

For one weekend, Kaarlenholvi and Jumpru Pub will transform into gateways to the 2029 European Capital of Culture: Kiruna, Sweden. Kiruna2029 presents everyday life and the future of the city through a program that spans from underground to outer space.

On Friday and Saturday, Movement – below ground, on earth, in space brings designers and contemporary artists from Norrbotten County to Oulu. Presentations, quizzes, and videos open windows into the city’s life, landscapes, and movement. The Art of Transition program dives into changing urban and natural environments through various activities. Practice our knowledge – Artistic sessions explores the connections between cultural heritage and artistic expression in workshops and an artist lecture.

Each evening, the DJ session Endless Horizon creates a Kiruna night on the dance floor – music, movement, and light lead the way toward the future of Europe’s northernmost Capital of Culture.

Turku, the European Capital of Culture 2011, brings vibrant energy to Oulu’s 45 Special! As it prepares for its 800th anniversary, Turku showcases the upcoming Fuuga Music Hall (opening 2026) and the renewed WAM Art Museum. The With love, Turku program blends music, animation, DJ culture, and experimental visual art across two nights.
Highlights include Finnish animated gems from the Turku Animated Film Festival, the Turku Philharmonic string quartet, and the Flame Jazz Tagine ensemble. DJs Haikkakommando, Niko Pettersen, and VRA create an eclectic soundscape from techno to ambient and Chicago house.

Culture Next Lounge Turns Success and Failure into Strength at Teerenpeli

The Culture Next Lounge at Teerenpeli is a lively and interactive meeting place for the network of European Capitals of Culture during the opening festival on Friday and Saturday. Cities that have won or lost the title come together to explore how to move beyond competition and how both victory and defeat can serve as starting points for creativity and collaboration. Each day, network cities will present and pitch their projects, programs, and artists.

Friday’s panel will delve into the meaning of success and “failure” in the Capital of Culture context and the new beginnings the process can spark. The audience is invited to share ideas that will inspire the Culture Next mural, unveiled on Saturday. At the World Fair, each city will have its own stand where culture, food, and drink open doors to local stories. The evening continues with the official Culture Next Afterparty, where music and encounters carry on into the night.

Saturday begins with Hangover Brunch with Culture Next Artists, featuring performances by artists from network countries who now live in the North. After the unveiling of the Culture Next mural, the evening culminates in the Smooth Afterparty—a moment to relax, connect, and celebrate the fruits of collaborative cultural work.

Community art work. 

Central Library Saari celebrates its opening together with the Children’s Cultural Center Kotilo all weekend long. These festivities will be filled with music, workshops, play, and friendship!

The book The Book of Oulu, created by more than 200 Oulu children in collaboration with artists, will have its official launch with a proper celebration. Made for everyone with a childlike spirit—and especially for adults—the book shows what Oulu looks like through children’s eyes and how they would shape the city if they could decide. Don’t miss the chance to collect autographs from the delightful young creators on the book’s title pages!

At Kotilo’s playful workshops, participants will explore through art what Kotilo is and what it represents. Rhythm takes over at Friday’s art disco and during Rytmikone Kasper’s beatbox performance. The theater group Näytelmätykit from Oulu Art School will present scenes they have designed themselves about friendship, its unexpected and absurd obstacles, and overcoming them. The children’s music band Pentti Punkin Syntymäpäivät will thrill the youngest audience members with energetic live shows and songs that adults will enjoy too.

Kotilo’s first family-friendly exhibitions will also open. In Friend’s House, stories, experiences, and dreams of Oulu’s children take visitors on a journey through our wild city. Joel Karppanen’s interactive media artwork invites children into the layered generations of Oulu and creates a space for friendship and empathy. Visitors can leave their own friendship messages in images, sounds, or stories. The In the Neighborhood exhibition features Johanna Ilander’s charming illustrations from The Book of Oulu.

Lights flash and pop music plays at Kauppurienaukio!
OSAO’s automotive and logistics students will showcase customized cars. Their creations can be admired throughout the entire weekend.

At Oulu’s House of Visual Arts, the exhibition Oulu Artists’ Association 68539.94 m² showcases works by artists from the Northern Ostrobothnia and Kainuu regions. It offers a snapshot of the diversity of local contemporary art and highlights artists for whom slow creation, varied materials, and different techniques are an essential part of their artistic identity.