Tom of Finland Foundation

Tom of Finland Foundation is in an old craftsman-​style home on top of a ridge with a backyard that looks down into a little valley. Touko Laaksonen better known around the world asTom of Finland is a very important Gay erotic artist who slowly rose to prominence after WWII in his native Finland. However, although Finland was a proud nation, it was under the domination of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics and was in the backwater of Eastern Europe.
Finland, hardly a progressive environment to allow such freedom loving artist to thrive so Tom started sending his works to Physique Pictoral, a muscle magazine, in 1957 where he established his fame in America which had pockets of relatively advanced cultural civilization in such places as New York City, San Francisco, and perhaps Los Angeles.
Somewhere down the line, Durk Dehner, a Canadian who was a model, sought out Tom since Kirk was so impressed with the artistic sensibilities of Tom to the point that at some later date, Dirk invited Tom to become a guest at the craftsman home in Echo Park. By the 1980’s Tom had his personal bedroom/​workshop in the attic where he created masterworks and stayed in Echo Park half the year. Unfortunately, Tom passed away in November of 1991, but he left an impressive oeuvre befitting his world class status in Gay male erotic art.
The Tom of Finland Foundation has many facets to its mission:
1) Preserve, catalog, digitize works of Touko Laaksonen as well as other artists
2) Promote present day artists by sponsoring art shows, and inviting artists to participate
3) Encourage emerging artists to show their work & giving receptions to «high potential artists»
4) Having guest artists stay at the Foundation
5) Sale of art reproductions of Tom of Finland & other prominent artists in its holdings.
6) Collaborating with other galleries and/​or museums to present detailed artwork especially of Tom of Finland for exhibitions such as the MOCA exhibit in the Design Center, West Hollywood.
7) Assisting research by other museums & organizations of ephemera, records, art work of all artists in the Tom of Finland Foundation’s collection.
8) Promoting the world of Tom by sponsoring events en site such as the Spring Equinox Parties, Summer Solstice Parties, Belly Dancing with a touch of leather & finger cymbels, etc. These types of events generally tend to be Pan Sexual… LGBT, Hetero, Drag, etc. Tom of Finland is an equal opportunity promoter of anything erotic as long as it is done in good taste and maybe not so good taste. (One man’s meat is another man’s poison.)
9) I’m sure I’ve missed something in terms of their mission. So Durk, let me know if I missed something major
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We got a very personal tour from Durk Dehner all the way up to the Sanctum Sanctorum, the attic bedroom of Tom of Finland, and everything in between. This night was concluded with about 5 different belly dancers all undulating suggestively & artistically. Some were male as others were female to please the mixed audience. Great house in which to be naughty or nice. It’s your right to choose what you want to be which would be a concept very much appreciated by Touko Laaksonen. (Remember, government out of our private lives!!!)

I’ve never been to a «leather event benefit,» but just for laughs I thought it would be great to go to with the boyfriend during the erotic art fair weekend that was advertised. I had a BLAAAAST\.on 10 bucks.
Walking up the house… well it’s rather beautiful old structure, thats rather classy I must say… the house itself is a actual foundation and… A HUGE archive (sorry history/​archive freak here) of erotic art from all over the world…
This is something I definately want to check out again…

I attended the Artist’s Reception for the Erotic Art Fair weekend this past Friday here with my buddy, Anthony, who was so kind as to give me the heads-​up about this event and invite me along.
Driving up the hills of Echo Park, we spotted the house… a 3-​story affair with gorgeous, soulful windows and a huge front terrace. The entry fee went entirely to the Foundation, whose main goal is to promote the work of Tom of Finland, as well as many other, recent, erotic artists of all backgrounds and creeds… like a safe-​haven for subversive, powerful, deeply sexual works of all kinds of mind-​fuckery and inspiration.
The exhibition was set all around the house… from the foyer, to the bedrooms (replete with the full spectrum of leather gear on display), to the bathrooms, to the loft on the 3^rd floor. I was immediately moved by the honest, earthy way all the eye-​and-​mind candy were displayed. It was like being welcomed into someone’s home… intimate and comforting and warm. A shrine to cock on the 2^nd floor, with Tom’s touch on almost all of it. It was incredible.
We proceeded to the patio/​party area, where there was an open honor bar and appetizers being passed around by leatherdaddies. Artists and joe-​six-​packs (like myself) gathered together… the conversation was flowing. I was heady and happy with all this honesty and passion around me… it was seriously fucking cool, and my words really can’t describe it. The crowning piece of the patio was the «queening chair», which I had to restrain myself from sitting in with my glass of wine.
The Foundation House hosts all kinds of affairs, from book clubs to art exhibits, and is always contributing to expanding minds and pushing the limits. They have my full love and support for that alone… especially in this world of façade and boundaries. It’s a war on bullshit. I encourage anyone who might have the notion to check out one of their events, or stop by for a tour of the house. It’s for the one of the very best of causes.