fatal error: 'vips/vips8' file not found

I’m having problems installing sharp in a clean node:12 container.

docker run --rm -it node:12 npm i sharp

> sharp@0.23.0 install /node_modules/sharp
> (node install/libvips && node install/dll-copy && prebuild-install) || (node-gyp rebuild && node install/dll-copy)

info sharp Downloading https://github.com/lovell/sharp-libvips/releases/download/v8.8.1/libvips-8.8.1-linux-x64.tar.gz
prebuild-install WARN install libvips-cpp.so.42: cannot open shared object file: No such file or directory
make: Entering directory '/node_modules/sharp/build'
  TOUCH Release/obj.target/libvips-cpp.stamp
  CXX(target) Release/obj.target/sharp/src/common.o
../src/common.cc:25:22: fatal error: vips/vips8: No such file or directory
 #include <vips/vips8>
                      ^
compilation terminated.
sharp.target.mk:135: recipe for target 'Release/obj.target/sharp/src/common.o' failed
make: *** [Release/obj.target/sharp/src/common.o] Error 1
make: Leaving directory '/node_modules/sharp/build'
gyp ERR! build error 
gyp ERR! stack Error: `make` failed with exit code: 2
gyp ERR! stack     at ChildProcess.onExit (/usr/local/lib/node_modules/npm/node_modules/node-gyp/lib/build.js:196:23)
gyp ERR! stack     at ChildProcess.emit (events.js:209:13)
gyp ERR! stack     at Process.ChildProcess._handle.onexit (internal/child_process.js:272:12)
gyp ERR! System Linux 5.0.0-29-generic
gyp ERR! command "/usr/local/bin/node" "/usr/local/lib/node_modules/npm/node_modules/node-gyp/bin/node-gyp.js" "rebuild"
gyp ERR! cwd /node_modules/sharp
gyp ERR! node -v v12.10.0
gyp ERR! node-gyp -v v5.0.3
gyp ERR! not ok 
npm WARN enoent ENOENT: no such file or directory, open '/package.json'
npm WARN !invalid#1 No description
npm WARN !invalid#1 No repository field.
npm WARN !invalid#1 No README data
npm WARN !invalid#1 No license field.

npm ERR! code ELIFECYCLE
npm ERR! errno 1
npm ERR! sharp@0.23.0 install: `(node install/libvips && node install/dll-copy && prebuild-install) || (node-gyp rebuild && node install/dll-copy)`
npm ERR! Exit status 1
npm ERR! 
npm ERR! Failed at the sharp@0.23.0 install script.
npm ERR! This is probably not a problem with npm. There is likely additional logging output above.

npm ERR! A complete log of this run can be found in:
npm ERR!     /root/.npm/_logs/2019-09-23T18_08_09_973Z-debug.log

The issue is quite unfamiliar to me and i havent find the cause yet. Im posting early hoping somebody can point me in the right direction.