Playroom "Leikkilä"

The Northern Ostrobothnia Museum has opened a playroom of approximately 30 square meters decorated and furnished in the style of Oulu at the turn of the 19th and the 20th centuries. The playroom is a time capsule to the beginning of the 20th century where children can imagine themselves to the role of a child more than 100 years ago. The exhibition is hands-on and action-based with numerous historical toys.

The exhibition is accompanied by a newspaper that showcases the topical concerns, talking points, travel destinations and – of course – toys of the day.

In the playroom, children can experience what it felt like to be a child more than 100 years ago. Imagine yourself to the role of a market seller, fisher or the child of a merchant family.

“When the downstairs gallery was removed from use a few years ago, our highly popular Kakaravaara and Koiramäki exhibitions had to be closed. As a result, there was, for a while, no place for play the museum. The playroom we now open addresses this shortcoming”, curator Arja Keskitalo says.

The playroom has been designed following the principles of sustainable development. Many recycled materials are used, and a number of favourite items from past exhibition have been brought back.