On Sunday I went to Marimekko.

Armi Ratia and her husband Viljo picked me up and we went to their showroom and factory. We looked at dress designs and many fabrics and had a tour of the hand printing factory. On Wednesday there will be a marimekko fashion show in an open air cafe on the Esplanaadi which is the heart of the most fashionable area of Helsinki and where all the major brands have their retail shops including marimekko. I was invited and participated in my first, of many marimekko fashion shows. After the show Armi invited me to join her and her entourage for dinner at Palce Hotel. The show was a great success and we had a joyous evening. My table companion was Vuokko Eskolin Nurmesniemi, who with her husband Antti became dear friends. On one occasion, I arrived at Armi's apartment and found a celebration in full swing. People were drinking Campari and soda, singing and dancing and celebrating the arrival of spring. Everyone was young, beautiful , full of energy and enthusiasm and committed to the common vision of Armi's Marimekko.

At my first meeting with Armi, she invited me to come to Bøkars that evening. Bøkars was Armi's manor house and country property. A place to work and to relax, to entertain clients and the press, to celebrate life and to share. Bøkars was located near the old fishing village of Porvoo, east of Helsinki right on the Baltic sea. A car picked me up , we drove about an hour and arrived in the late afternoon. In addition to the manor house, there were a number of farm buildings which had been renovated into exhibition spaces, meeting and presentation rooms as well as studios.

My First Trip to FinlandJanis KravisNovember 28, 20171Comment