Artists Tellervo Kalleinen and Oliver Kochta-Kalleinen are building The Most Valuable Clock in the World in Oulu. The participatory artwork will be unveiled to the public for the first time on 9 May at Orava School in Kello, Haukipudas. It is part of the Climate Clock public art trail and the programme of Oulu’s European Capital of Culture year in 2026.
The clock’s mechanism, which combines analogue and digital technology, is now complete. Over the past year the work has been built together with local volunteer clockmakers at Orava’s old school building in Kello. The artists are currently editing video material filmed during 2025 that will be integrated into the clock.
“This artwork is created together with the people of Oulu. It has been wonderful to see how many people have wanted to take part – by building the clock or by donating one of their own valuable moments to it. When the clock is completed, it will remain as a lasting memory of this shared journey and of the European Capital of Culture year. It will also become a time capsule for future generations, capturing what life in Oulu looked like in 2025 and what people valued,” says artist Tellervo Kalleinen.
The Most Valuable Clock in the World displays valuable moments donated by people in Oulu: hour-, minute- and second-long glimpses of everyday life and of nature in the region. The time displayed by the clock is composed of these donated moments – small fragments that make life meaningful.
The artwork will open to the public on 9 May 2026 at Orava School in Haukipudas (Simunantie 15). The unveiling takes place at 13:00 in an event open to everyone, organised in collaboration with the Haukipudas Society’s Pihapiiri community event.
The clock will also be on view at Orava School on 13, 15, 20, 22 and 27 May 2026 from 9:30 to 15:30.
In June 2026, The Most Valuable Clock in the World will begin a tour. The work will be presented in several locations starting on the following dates:
2 June in Yli-Ii (Kierikki),
23 June in central Oulu (Cultural Centre Valve),
27 July in Ylikiiminki (community house),
1 October in Kiiminki (Syketalo),
1 November in Oulunsalo (library),
10 December in Tornio (Aine Art Museum),
and 18 June 2027 in Hämeenlinna (Art Museum).
Opening hours will be announced separately for each location.
Climate Clock public art trail will open in its entirety in Oulu on 13 June 2026. At the same time, the website for The Most Valuable Clock in the World will be launched. On the site, nature experts will discuss the moments in Oulu’s nature that were selected for the hour hand, while residents who contributed to the creation of the minute hand will share their stories.
About the artists
Tellervo Kalleinen and Oliver Kochta-Kalleinen are a Helsinki-based artist duo known for participatory artworks that invite people to take part in the creative process. Their projects combine elements such as film, performance, games and community workshops.
They are internationally recognised particularly for Complaints Choir, a participatory project performed in cities around the world. The duo received the AVEK Media Art Award in 2012 and the Ars Fennica Prize in 2014.
About Climate Clock
Climate Clock is one of the flagship productions of the Oulu2026 European Capital of Culture programme. The project brings together art, science and nature to strengthen environmental awareness and deepen our connection to the rhythms of the natural world.
Six permanent artworks will be installed in Haukipudas, Kiiminki, central Oulu, Oulunsalo, Yli-Ii and Ylikiiminki. The series is complemented by The Most Valuable Clock in the World, created in collaboration with local residents.
Other commissioned artists are: Ranti Bam (UK/Nigeria), Rana Begum (UK/Bangladesh), Takahiro Iwasaki (Japan), Gabriel Kuri (Belgium/Mexico), Antti Laitinen (Finland) and SUPERFLEX (Denmark).
Climate Clock is curated by Alice Sharp (Invisible Dust, UK), with Claudia Woolgar (Netherlands) as international producer.
Find out more about Climate Clock here.
