A Woman among Iron Fists

Vuokko Laakso's Ship Interior Designs
Linnanpuomi  2.12.2011-28.10.2012

Vuokko Laakso (b. 1937, presently Vuokko Ranin) and the design agency Studio Vuokko Laakso have designed over 50 interiors for passenger ships, passenger freighters, cargo ships and specialised vessels between the years 1964–1995. For decades, she was the regular collaborator with, chiefly, the Finnlines and Silja Line shipping companies and the Wärtsilä shipyard.

“This period can be regarded as a success story in Finnish shipbuilding. Success was made possible by the passionate work of talented and skilled experts; working together patiently, refining each other and pooling their knowledge."

Vuokko Laakso studied interior design at the University of Art and Design in Helsinki in the years 1958–1960. Having finished her studies, she worked as an interior designer at the office of the architect Aarne Ervi until 1965, when she established her own interior design agency together with her colleague Orvokki Niiniranta. Another of her long-standing collaborators was the interior designer Torsten Laakso. Since 1977, her agency has been called Studio Vuokko Laakso.

The activities of Studio Vuokko Laakso were already very international by the 1970s: ships were built for the Finnlines shipping company in, for example, Germany, Norway, Spain and Poland. In addition to ship interiors, Studio Vuokko Laakso has designed numerous other public spaces, such as hotels, city halls, and departments at the University of Jyväskylä.

The common feature of the interiors planned by Vuokko Laakso is an emphasis on comfort and high quality. Her ship interiors are familiar to a vast number of passengers and ship crews. Her ship interiors are also a significant, internationally recognised element of the Finnish interior design and shipbuilding industry.