Reopened in 2024, Miiamilla – widely celebrated as a child’s first museum experience – has quickly become one of the most visited museums in Estonia. Demand has been so high that it became the first museum in the country to require advance ticket purchases. The nomination recognises Miiamilla’s bold and child-centred approach: co-creating its new permanent exhibition with children, integrating children’s own drawings into the exhibition design, and inviting families to explore the museum through playful, creative and imaginative solutions.

“The children’s museum truly listens to children. This is a world where the child leads and the adult follows,” says Jane Meremaa-Roos, museum director and creator of the new exhibition. “A parent’s role is to slow down to the child’s rhythm and to be fully present. While this can be challenging at first, it has lasting positive effects on growing as a human being.”

The permanent exhibition features more than 100 toys and museum objects from cultural history collections, rocking horses gathered through community collection campaigns, and a wide range of everyday objects that shape children’s lives today, alongside original items designed in collaboration with children.

“Free play and learning through play are at the heart of the exhibition. Empathy is the unifying theme throughout the different rooms – empathy toward oneself, toward others, and toward the living environment,” explains curator and methodology designer Sireli Uusmaa.

“While the indoor exhibition explores and reflects the life of the contemporary child, the outdoor exhibition reveals the dignified history of the Children’s Park’s main building,” adds Meremaa-Roos, referring to the gate gallery in front of the museum. The exhibition and spatial design were developed in collaboration with MOTOR.

Established in 1977, the European Museum of the Year Award is presented by the European Museum Forum and is open primarily to new, recently renovated, or substantially renewed museums. In 2024, Kalamaja museum – another branch of the Tallinn City Museum – received the EMYA Stiletto Award for excellence in community engagement.

The winners of EMYA 2026 will be announced at the EMYA 2026 Annual Conference and Awards Ceremony in Bilbao, taking place from 10–14 June 2026. Hosted by Euskaren Etxea and its Basque Language Interpretation Centre, the winner of the 2025 Council of Europe Museum Prize, the event will bring together the international EMYA community, including past nominees and winners, partners, and this year’s shortlisted museums.

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