Representatives of the UCCN (UNESCO Creative Cities Network) gathered in Oulu on 28 February for a meeting of Nordic and Baltic creative cities, featuring a focused visit to AaltoSiilo.

Thirteen cities were represented at the meeting: Gothenburg (Literature), Hamar (Media Arts), Lund (Literature), Norrköping (Music), Oulu (Media Arts), Reykjavik (Literature), Rovaniemi (Architecture), Tallinn (Music), Tartu (Literature), Tukums (Literature), Viborg (Media Arts), Vilnius (Literature) and Östersund (Gastronomy).

The visit was led by Adam Lowe, Director of Factum Arte and Founder of Factum Foundation, and Valentino Tignanelli, Project Manager at AaltoSiilo, who presented the vision, development process and future plans for the site. Discussions centered on the replicability of the AaltoSiilo model for revitalizing industrial heritage as part of a broader network of UNESCO-related activities.

As a former industrial structure reimagined for contemporary cultural use, the site offers a compelling example of how architectural heritage can be transformed into a dynamic platform for creative collaboration and sustainable cultural development. Participants explored how similar approaches could be adapted across other Creative Cities, strengthening cooperation within the Nordic and Baltic UCCN network while promoting innovation rooted in local identity and heritage.

Charlotte Skene Catling has presented “AaltoSiilo: Silo Dreaming – A Journey of Revitalisation 1931–2031” at the CONCRETO Academy training seminar, CONCRETO Steppingstone 2026.

The lecture highlighted the Toppila Silo, the first industrial site designed by Alvar Aalto and Aino Aalto. Commissioned in 1929 and completed in 1931 as part of a cellulose factory complex in Oulu’s historic industrial district, the striking concrete structure remains a bold and divisive icon of early modernism.

At the heart of the AaltoSiilo project is the innovative “Oulu Spolia Protocol,” a pioneering reuse strategy that identifies buildings scheduled for demolition and carefully dismantles substantial concrete elements for integration into new constructions. By reframing waste as resource, the initiative positions concrete heritage within the circular economy and advances new models of climate-conscious preservation.

Presented as a living laboratory, the AaltoSiilo project demonstrates how sustainability, science, and art can converge within an industrial monument — enriching Aalto’s legacy and redefining the future of concrete heritage.

Join us for something truly special this winter: Jäätalkoot – a unique community project where you'll help construct an ice sauna alongside Snowhow Oy!

The ice sauna will be constructed as a community project led by professionals – anyone can take part, no prior experience is required. Construction will take place over one week, Tue–Sun 17–22 February 2026 from 9am to 3pm, in the courtyard of the Aaltosiilo in Meri-Toppila.

Join in and help whenever it suits you. There will be a variety of tasks available, from moving ice blocks to sawing sauna benches. Contact details for volunteers on the construction site and for learning about ice sauna building (no prior experience required): Seppo Mäkinen (snowhow@kolumbus.fi)

Please dress warmly, as the work takes place outdoors, and bring a warm drink with you. There is an outdoor toilet at the silo. Join this unforgettable construction project and experience how an ice sauna is built together as a community!

On 23–26 February, the Ice Sauna will be open and free to all, from 4pm to 9pm. Sauna sessions can be booked for groups of 4–6 people! Click here to book your session

More info about this event on Oulu2026

Opening Exhibition of Oulu European Capital of Culture 2026: 26 February — 1 March 2026

AALTOSIILO opens its exhibition programme for Oulu European Capital of Culture 2026 with Bernd Nicolaisen: Residual Light, a luminous and atmospheric presentation of the Swiss artist’s long-term collaboration with Factum Arte and Factum Foundation.

For nearly a decade, Nicolaisen has worked closely with Factum to explore hidden landscapes — from the interior of glaciers to the shadowed strata of Australia’s Pilbara and the surfaces of comet 67P.

His images are the result of fieldwork, scientific cooperation, and a meticulous digital-to-physical process that reveals intricate structures normally invisible to the human eye.

Residual Light brings together this ongoing research through a focused selection of large-scale lightboxes (150 × 120 × 15 cm) and medium-format works (65.4 × 55.8 cm), each one suspended between abstraction and geological truth. The exhibition highlights a shared commitment to documenting fragile environments at a moment when they are undergoing rapid transformation.

This marks the first official exhibition at AALTOSIILO, and coincides with the inauguration of the venue’s Ice Sauna, a new addition to the restored industrial site. Once a sulphite cellulose silo, AALTOSIILO is being reactivated as a cultural, artistic and scientific hub — and Nicolaisen’s work opens the year with a clear statement of intent: precision, research, beauty, and material awareness.

Residual Light invites visitors to explore the fragile threshold between what remains and what is fading, mirroring AALTOSIILO’s own shift from industrial structure to cultural space.

February 27 – March 1, 2026 (12:00 - 18:00)
Opening night: February 26, 17:30
AaltoSiilo, Oulu

As Oulu steps into its year as European Capital of Culture 2026, AaltoSiilo continues to take shape as one of its most ambitious legacy projects. Earlier this month, the project was presented at the 'New European Bauhaus in the North' seminar at Design Centre Proto where Valentino Tignanelli, AaltoSiilo Project Manager, shared the story of the Silo’s transformation—from a derelict wood chip store in a cellulose factory into a vibrant cultural hub and multi-purpose space. The seminar was followed by an on-site visit, offering participants a direct experience of the building and its evolving potential.

As Oulu’s long-term legacy project for 2026, AaltoSiilo has been part of the New European Bauhaus (NEB) network since 2024. The NEB brings together sustainability, aesthetics and inclusion, linking the European Green Deal with lived experience and the transformation of places. AaltoSiilo embodies these values through reuse, recycling and careful architectural preservation—demonstrating how existing industrial structures can be adapted in ways that are genuinely sustainable. 'Concrete' and 'sustainable' are not words that are often used together but Charlotte Skene Catling's work to develop the Oulu Protocol proves that re-use can be more viable than demolition if linked to planning gains.

The building is still very raw, but it will host its full programme of events. A provisional programme is now available on the Aalto Siilo website, but there is room for it to get fuller and deeper—please sponsor an event or suggest an addition to the calendar! You can also follow updates on Instagram.

The Silo is more than a legacy project—it’s a Brutalist symbol transforming a socially deprived area on the edge of the Arctic Circle, the front line of cultural climate change!

As Oulu begins its year as European Capital of Culture 2026, we are excited to participate in the 'New European Bauhaus in the North' Seminar on Thursday, 15 January 2026, at Design Centre Proto.
Valentino Tignanelli, AaltoSiilo Project Manager, will present the Silo's journey from once-derelict sulphite cellulose factory into a vibrant cultural hub and multi-purpose space. Valentino will also lead a visit to the Silo with seminar participants on 16 January.

As Oulu's legacy project for European Capital of Culture 2026, the AaltoSiilo has been part of the New European Bauhaus (NEB) network since 2024. The New European Bauhaus is a creative and interdisciplinary initiative that bridges the European Green Deal with lived experiences and places, bringing together sustainability, aesthetics, and inclusion to transform how we design and experience our built environments.

The Silo embodies NEB values through its remarkable transformation, and how the reuse and recycling of existing buildings can become standard practice, addressing climate change through architecture itself while preserving industrial heritage and creating dynamic spaces for cultural exchange.

Meanwhile, the Silo is almost ready for the full programme of events, exhibition and activities. After dedicating last year’s summer and autumn to restoring the windows, creating the new floors, installing heating systems, finishing façade works and adding new doors, we are now finalising the last steps of the renovations.

A full programme will be shared very soon—watch this space and follow us on Instagram to stay up-to-date on all that's happening! We also warmly invite you to participate to the opening festival of Oulu2026 on 16-18 January, and to the new exhibition 'Beyond Zero' (16 January—7 March) at Design Center Proto, also a New European Bauhaus partner.

As part of the AaltoSiilo's transformation into the legacy project of Oulu's year as European Capital of Culture 2026, the restoration project led by Factum Foundation in collaboration with Skene Catling de la Peña saw the collaboration of students from the Educational Consortium OSAO, a vocational education and training institution operating in Northern Finland. From August to November 2025, the students worked with architects and experts from the architectural and restoration fields, gaining hands-on experience in cultural heritage preservation within an international working environment.

We would like to thank Janne Petteri Korhonen, student at the Educational Consortium OSAO, for his work and for producing this video documenting the renovation of the Silo.

Winter arrived in Oulu, coinciding with the final push of renovation work at the Silo before the end of 2025 and the end of the OSAO restoration students' internship. The experimental brick floor, made using reclaimed bricks sourced from former factories in the Oulu area, is now complete.

During the closing ceremony of their internship, the students left their thumbprints on the central module, continuing a long tradition of craftspeople leaving their mark on the buildings they help create. On behalf of Factum Foundation and AaltoSiilo Ry, our deepest thanks!