Tom of Finland’s iconic artwork is instantly recognizable to many of his fans. However, peer closer at these images and you’ll quickly realize that rather than muscle-bound hunks, they feature dogs and cats.
They’re the creation of a Finnish pet care company, which wanted to mark Helsinki Pride in the country.
Musti Group has created three pieces of Tom-inspired artwork and is plastering them around Helsinki on advertising space for Pride Week (June 26th-July 2nd) in the city.
Musti Group sought permission from the official Tom of Finland Foundation, based in California, for the campaign.
“Instead of just drawing inspiration from the art of Tom, we felt it was important to get an official seal of approval from the Tom of Finland Foundation. This way our pet versions become a small part of the Tom family, and we get to show our support to the legacy of this great artist and the foundation that looks after it”, said Eveliina Rantahalvari, Marketing Manager of Musti Group, in a statement.
Who was Tom of Finland?
Tom of Finland is one of the 20th century’s most revered gay artists. Born Touko Laaksonen on May 8, 1920, he grew up in the Finnish town of Kaarina, near Turku.
For many decades, Laaksonen churned out his highly-charged, erotic artwork anonymously, using just his ‘Tom of Finland’ moniker. There was a tremendous stigma around homosexuality at the time. Fortunately, times have changed. In recent years, Laaksonen’s home country has increasingly celebrated one of its most famous sons.
In a belated nod of recognition, in 2014, the Finnish Postal Service produced a set of stamps featuring his drawings. It went on to be the country’s biggest-selling set of stamps ever.
Laaksonen began drawing erotic drawings of men in his late teens, before being conscripted into the army to fight in World War II. He says his experiences with other men at the time led to him developing a fetish for uniforms.
Under his pen name, he continued to draw erotic art, developing a stylized aesthetic: detailed drawings of men in leather and uniforms, often with hyper-exaggerated muscles and genitals. He specialized in bikers, laborers, sailors, and soldiers.
His work first reached a wider audience when he sent it in 1957 to the US magazine Physique Pictorial.
Laaksonen’s erotic art immediately found a following. People not only loved his photorealistic approach, but also the fact his work showed guys unapologetically and shamelessly enjoying sex with one another. His men were often shown smiling and staring lustily at one another: a sexy, liberating utopian fantasy that most gay men could only dream about in real life.
Laaksonen died of an emphysema-induced stroke in 1991, aged 71.
Related*
Tom of Finland: The man, the myth, the homoerotic legend
The artist behind the drawings of gay hyper-masculinity remains a mystery to many.
10 sexy men for Tom of Finland’s 102nd birthday
Tom of Finland not only pushed the boundaries of homoerotic art and censorship in the 1950s and 60s, but his images became intertwined with gay culture and the gay aesthetic of the 1970s until present day.
abfab
Please forgive them, Tom, they know not what they do. KA-CHING $$$
Let’s see what other classic works we can water down, dilute, erode and defame. No.