Artistic methods for researching urban environments – members of the international UNIC alliance gathered in Meri-Toppila
For the University of Oulu, UNIC (The European University of Cities in Post-Industrial Transition) is one of the key channels for international collaboration. UNICart Oulu BIP provided a concrete example of how the alliance can be used to build interdisciplinary, mobility-supporting, and socially engaged education.
Artistic methods for understanding urban change
“The theme of Oulu’s BIP (Blended Intensive Programme) was ‘Transdisciplinary Artistic Methods for Post-Industrial Urban Change.’ The program’s goal was to bring together students and experts in fields such as art, architecture, urban studies, and the social sciences to explore what kind of insights artistic, embodied, and participatory methods can offer regarding changing urban environments,” says researcher Markus Rytinki.
During the week, participants addressed topics such as accessibility, the experience of belonging, the use of public space, linguistic and cultural interfaces, and speculative and place-based urban development. The program included lectures, workshops, fieldwork, and small-group work, during which students developed their own ideas based on artistic interventions.
The content particularly emphasized artistic and research-based working methods that allow for the examination of urban space as an experiential, social, and cultural environment.
“The program gave participants new perspectives on how arts-based methods can complement urban research and support co-creation,” says Rytinki.
Meri-Toppila as a living learning environment
UNICart Oulu BIP was implemented as part of the Revitalize Meri-Toppila 2026 -event, in which the AaltoSiilo and Meri-Toppila areas served as a living laboratory environment for several concurrent workshops. Revitalize Meri-Toppila combines perspectives on cultural activation, the reuse of architectural heritage, landscape design, and community-driven development.
“Meri-Toppila provided the seminar week with an authentic post-industrial urban environment where participants had the opportunity to work with real places, communities, and development issues. The fieldwork focused particularly on an experiential and participatory examination of the area, as well as on how artistic methods can help make the meanings and needs associated with places visible,” Rytinki explains.
The connection to the Revitalize Meri-Toppila event reinforced the program’s practical focus. Learning did not take place solely within the university’s facilities, but as part of a broader international context in which urban space was examined simultaneously from the perspectives of culture, community, well-being, and the built environment.
Collaboration at the intersection of education, research, and urban development
At the end of the week, the students presented the results of their group projects at Reenis. The program culminated in a closing event held at AaltoSiilo.
“UNICart Oulu BIP demonstrated in practice how artistic methods can serve not only as tools for teaching and research but also for urban development. At the same time, the program reinforced the understanding that international cooperation is built on working together around real places and social issues. “The event also reinforced the University of Oulu’s role as an active player in European cooperation, where urban transformation is examined in a multidisciplinary, participatory, and practical manner,” Rytinki noted.
An international learning environment within the network of ten UNIC universities
Participants from six UNIC universities arrived in Oulu: the University of Liège, Ruhr University Bochum, Erasmus University Rotterdam, University College Cork, the University of Lodz, and the University of Deusto. UNIC is a European alliance of ten universities operating in ten post-industrial urban environments. UNIC’s goal is to create new European models for learning, working, and research that will shape the future of higher education.
The program took place at the University of Oulu’s Linnanmaa campus, as well as in Meri-Toppila at Reenis and in the AaltoSiilo area. The program also included a preliminary online session on May 7, 2026, during which participants were introduced to the program’s themes, working methods, and the Meri-Toppila context.
UNICart Oulu BIP was part of the activities of UNIC’s Theme 7 on art, culture, and creativity. The goal of this theme is to integrate perspectives on art, culture, and creativity into teaching, research, and societal collaboration across the UNIC alliance.
Photo: Markus Rytinki