KinderKunstLabor

What KinderKunstLabor does

KinderKunstLabor is a children's museum dedicated to contemporary art, located in St. Pölten, Lower Austria. Opened in June 2024 and operated by NÖ Kulturlandeshauptstadt St. Pölten GmbH — a 50/50 public entity owned by the City of St. Pölten and NÖKU (Niederösterreich Kulturwirtschaft) — it functions as Austria's only museum of its kind aimed specifically at children. Its core offerings include curated exhibitions, art-mediation programs, workshops, a bistro, and merchandise, with programming shaped in part by a Children's Advisory Board drawing from 12 partner schools and kindergartens.

The institution is led by Managing Directors Matthias Pacher and Stefan Mitterer, with Mona Jas as Artistic Director and Eva Leutgeb (joined 2025) on the curatorial team. The venue was co-designed architecturally with children and sits in an award-winning timber building. Its technology footprint is limited to a Django-based public website and an online ticketing platform; it offers a combined ticket with Museum Niederösterreich.

Revenue mechanics combine public-owner subsidies with earned income from ticket sales (€15 combined ticket), workshops, the bistro, merchandise, and publications. The go-to-market is community-led and event-driven, anchored by the school network, family visitors, and recurring exhibitions, with international programming partnerships (Tate Modern, EDUCULT, ZOOM Kindermuseum, lapurla, Moravian Gallery Brno) extending the institution's reach and reputation beyond its single physical site.

Name

KinderKunstLabor

Legal name

NÖ Kulturlandeshauptstadt St. Pölten GmbH

Website

https://kinderkunstlabor.at

Company type

Private

Founded year

2024

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

KinderKunstLabor is a publicly funded children's museum for contemporary art in St. Pölten, Austria, opened June 2024. It serves children, families, and schools through curated exhibitions, workshops, art mediation, and bistro/merchandise, with programming co-shaped by 12 partner schools.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Children's Contemporary Art Museum

NAICS

Museums (712110), Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (712)

SIC

Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)

akta.pro primary industry

Children’s Museums (THAJADAE)

akta.pro secondary industry

Arts & Crafts Workshops (Painting, Pottery, Ceramics, Sculpture) (THAJAKAA)

Keywords

• Contemporary art exhibitions
• Children's museum
• Art education programs
• Interactive workshops
• Cultural institution

Headquarters

HQ city

St. Pölten

HQ country

Austria

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Admission Tickets: Visitors purchase individual tickets for entry to exhibitions and all areas of the house. Annual passes and subscription packages (Abonnements) are also available at reduced rates.
2. Workshops and Guided Tours: Additional fee-based programs including workshops (e.g., ReGenerativa, KOERNOE series), artist-guided tours, and art mediation sessions are charged separately from admission.
3. Merchandise and Publications: The institution sells its first specialist publication 'Can Institutions Learn (to get going)?' (Passagen Verlag, 2024) and other merchandise through on-site and online channels.
4. Bistro Das Altoona: A bistro operated by an external team (Edison at Museum Niederösterreich) provides food, coffee, and organic ice cream on-site, generating ancillary revenue from visitors.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

KinderKunstLabor operates a publicly funded children's museum for contemporary art, delivering twice-yearly rotating exhibitions featuring internationally renowned artists alongside interactive art mediation programs (workshops, tours, art ideas workshops, the Magic Moment celebration package). It also operates an on-site bistro (Das Altoona), an online ticket shop, and co-creation programs including the Children's Advisory Board, the Researcher-in-Residence program, the ReGenerativa workshop series, and the Academy of Unlearning mentoring program.

Product overview

KinderKunstLabor is a children's museum for contemporary art with a platform-plus-modules architecture. The core offering is twice-yearly rotating exhibitions featuring internationally renowned artists, supported by interactive art mediation programs including workshops, tours, and the Art Ideas Workshop for co-creation. Key add-on modules include the Children's Advisory Board (Kinderbeirat) for participatory programming, the Researcher-in-Residence research program, the Learning Institution framework for continuous institutional development, and specialist publications documenting research. Additional services include the Bistro Das Altoona, Magic Moment celebration packages, the ReGenerativa workshop series, and the Academy of Unlearning mentoring program. An online ticket shop enables admission sales, annual passes, and combination tickets with Museum Niederösterreich.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Online Ticket Shop (Admission Tickets & Annual Passes) Online ticket sales platform (shop.kinderkunstlabor.at) where visitors purchase individual admission tickets for the current exhibition and all areas of the house, annual passes, and Abonnements subscription packages at reduced rates. E-tickets are sent electronically with barcode scanning at entry. Discounted tickets are available for children, families with NÖ Familienpass, and other eligible groups.
• Rotating Contemporary Art Exhibitions

Quantifiable outcome

• 12 partner schools and kindergartens actively engaged through Children's Advisory Board programs
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

21 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Stadt St. PöltencoreOthersCity of St. Pölten is a 50% shareholder of NÖ Kulturlandeshauptstadt St. Pölten GmbH and provides core funding for the institution's operations and programming.
• NÖ Kulturwirtschaft GesmbH (NÖKU)coreOthersNÖKU is a 50% shareholder and parent organization, part of a group of 16 cultural institutions in Lower Austria. NÖKU provides operational infrastructure, data management (joint database), marketing support, and accessibility services (via Kunstmeile Krems GmbH).
• Land NiederösterreichcoreOthersThe State of Lower Austria provides institutional funding through cultural support programs, alongside the city government.
• Sparkasse Niederösterreich Mitte WestminorOthersMain sponsor providing financial support for institutional operations and programs.
• EVNminorOthersMain sponsor providing financial support for institutional operations and programs.
• Wirtschaftskammer NiederösterreichminorOthersMain sponsor; co-organizer of 'Aktionstage' promotional events offering free admission to business owners and their families.
• Wiener Städtische VersicherungminorOthersMain sponsor; provides free admission periods for Wiener Städtische customers and their children.
• PorrminorOthersSponsor providing financial support for institutional operations.
• Freunde der Kultur St. PöltenminorOthersSupport organization (Förderverein) that provides ongoing financial and community support for the institution.
• Niederösterreich CardminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorThe NÖ Card grants cardholders free or discounted admission to the institution, distributing access through the regional card program network.
• Hands On! International Association of Children in MuseumsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational network of children's museum experts. Andrea Zsutty (Director of ZOOM Kindermuseum Wien and board member of Hands On! International) participates in KinderKunstLabor symposia and programs.
• ICOM ÖsterreichminorOthersInternational Council of Museums – Austrian branch. Listed as a partner organization.
• lapurlaminorOthersSwiss partner organization in the children's cultural education space. Nature of partnership not further detailed in available sources.
• Museum NiederösterreichcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Lower Austria Museum and KinderKunstLabor share a combined ticket (Kombiticket, €15) and collaborative programming. The Edison bistro team from Museum Niederösterreich operates the Das Altoona bistro at KinderKunstLabor.
• EDUCULT WiencoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerVienna-based research and consulting institute specializing in culture, education, and policy. EDUCULT co-organized the 1st International Symposium 'Can Institutions Learn (to get going)?' (November 2024) and co-edited the first specialist publication with Mona Jas and Aron Weigl.
• Kunsthalle KremsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAndreas Hoffer serves as curator for both Kunsthalle Krems and KinderKunstLabor, facilitating cross-institution collaboration and shared programming.
• Tangente St. PöltenminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFestival for contemporary culture in St. Pölten. Muhammet Ali Baş serves as curator and city projects mediator. Collaborated on the 'Nur Kinder verändern die Welt' event (September 2024) and KoERNOE workshop series.
• Tate Modern & Tate BritainminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSenior Learning Curators Leanne Turvey and Alice Walton spoke at the 2024 international symposium. Tate's school and teacher programs serve as models for KinderKunstLabor's educational programming approach.
• ZOOM Kindermuseum WienminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAndrea Zsutty, Director of ZOOM Kindermuseum, participated in the 2024 symposium as a speaker and serves as board member of Hands On! International, connecting the two children's cultural institutions.
• Moravian Gallery in BrnominorStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational project partner. KinderKunstLabor visited the Moravian Gallery in Brno in March 2026 for a project day where children and parents explored archive management, digitization, and restoration through workshops and tours.
• Kulturen in BewegungminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerVienna-based organization running the Academy of Unlearning mentoring program for migrant and BIPoC women interested in cultural mediation. KinderKunstLabor is a cooperating institution in this program (2026/2027 cycle).

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Tate Modern (London): Major contemporary art museum with dedicated schools and learning programs; comparable as a contemporary art venue with significant children's educational programming — also a documented symposium partner of KinderKunstLabor.
• Centre Pompidou (Paris): Iconic contemporary art museum operating the Atelier des Enfants children's workshops; comparable as a broader incumbent offering contemporary art programming for young audiences alongside a much wider institutional portfolio.

Direct peers

• ZOOM Kindermuseum Wien: Vienna-based children's museum dedicated to interactive cultural education and contemporary art; most direct Austrian comparable given shared children's museum mission and Andrea Zsutty's involvement in both institutions.
• Labyrinth Kindermuseum Berlin: Berlin's well-established interactive children's museum offering hands-on cultural and artistic experiences; directly comparable as a German-speaking European children's museum with participatory art programming.
• Cité des Enfants (La Villette, Paris): Major children's museum inside La Villette science park offering structured workshops for kids across culture and science; directly comparable as a high-traffic European children's museum with rotating interactive programming.
• Muba — Museo dei Bambini Milano: Italy's leading children's museum in Milan offering interactive experiences across culture, science, and art; comparable European children's museum with a comparable mix of educational programming and rotating exhibitions.

Regional players

• Kunsthalle Krems: Lower Austrian contemporary art institution in Krems sharing curator Andreas Hoffer with KinderKunstLabor; comparable as a regional contemporary art venue with educational and exhibition programming.
• Museum Niederösterreich (St. Pölten): Adjacent regional museum in St. Pölten operating the Kombiticket and Das Altoona bistro in cooperation with KinderKunstLabor; comparable as a regional Lower Austrian cultural institution sharing audience and operations.
• Moravian Gallery in Brno: Czech regional art museum collaborating with KinderKunstLabor on joint project days; comparable as a Central European cultural institution engaging with children and families through contemporary art programming.

Others

• Hands On! International Association of Children in Museums: International association of children's museum practitioners and institutions; Andrea Zsutty (ZOOM director) sits on its board and has spoken at KinderKunstLabor symposia, making this an ecosystem connector rather than a direct competitor.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCniFb5sAk-f554vwKJze-Rg
• Facebookfacebook.com/KinderKunstLabor
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/kinderkunstlabor
• Instagraminstagram.com/kinderkunstlabor

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about KinderKunstLabor