Momentous Mori
Drew Frist
Momentous Mori
The man, the leather, the book. Drew Frist talks to Dian Hanson about the forthcoming release of the complete Tom of Finland
"He was a modest, shy man who lived through his fantasies"
–Dian Hanson on Tom of Finland
Tom of Finland may have been a shy man but was one with boundless imagination. The man who’s best known for his depictions of leather-clad brawn and smiling ‘deviants’ is not only a quintessential erotic artist but has, in time, become a countercultural demigod. While lesser explicit artists merely blur the line between porn and art, Tom has remained a benchmark for artistic and subversive fantasy.
Now the subject of a forthcoming retrospective, Tom and his leathermen are being bound in a way never previously imagined. The Complete Tom of Finland, the most comprehensive collection of his work yet, will feature a barefaced look at Tom’s art, spanning from his first, explorative drawings to his final black and white sketch before his death in 1991.
The brainchild of Benedikt Taschen himself, The Complete Tom of Finland will be the most ambitious collection of explicit art ever published. Taschen’s own Dian Hanson talks to NY Arts about the heading the project and visiting Tom’s Los Angeles home.
Drew Frist: I’ve always thought of Tom of Finland being a cult-art icon from another generation. What is the significance and timeliness of such an epic retrospective now?
Dian Hanson: The idea to do this book has been in place for a long time; we figured we better just start working on it now. The project itself is major. The book size and quality is based on the 25-pound, extra-large Leonardo da Vinci: The Complete Paintings and Drawings volume. And, well, Tom just had his work accepted into the Museum of Modern Art in New York. It also helped when I came on as sex book editor.
DF: Taschen has a history of producing and releasing Tom of Finland art books. What exactly is the history and connection between Taschen and Tom?
DH: It’s a question that’s been asked a lot. Benedikt Taschen just adores Tom and adores his work. We’ve been publishing books that he finds interesting and exciting–this is especially true in the sexual arena. Taschen is of course married and is heterosexual, but he really likes Tom’s work; he has his bedroom decorated in Tom of Finland originals. Tom is just a great artist independent of the subject matter.
DF: Taschen’s web site is clearly a place for the Tom of Finland collector or owner to submit work to the project, but how else have you been contacting contributors? Have there been any challenges?
DH: The Tom of Finland Foundation, located in Los Angeles, has been a great help in tracking down Tom’s work. Everything the foundation has, we have. The foundation has been really, really careful about documenting all of their source material–this includes original works and negatives. In any case, we’re also working with all known collectors.
Unfortunately, what’s left of a lot of Tom’s work are poor-quality black and white negatives that he took just before selling them. In some of the negatives, you can see Tom’s stocking-ed feet on either side of the image. Sometimes he didn’t even take pictures before selling them. Tom was a very generous guy; he gave away a lot of his pictures and portraits to his close friends. Tom also had large quantities of his work stolen. Once in the 1950s, an American visited his home in Finland and stole his whole portfolio. It has never surfaced. The second occurred in Berlin when 20 works were stolen from his hotel in the late 50s, early 60s, while he was there for a gallery exhibition.
DF: Tell me about visiting Tom’s Los Angeles house. What was it like being in the home of such a legend?
DH: It’s a Craftsman-style home owned by Durk Dehner, the foundation director. It’s lovely. There is bougainvillea, banana and bird of paradise surrounding the old house; big hedges surround the yard to protect outdoor play. Inside, erotic art is everywhere. The foundation works not only as a business, office and home but also as a sanctuary for erotic art and its admirers.
There is art on every surface in the house but for Tom’s space in the attic. Tom moved from Europe to Los Angeles when he lost his life partner, Veli. Durk made him a studio at the top of the house–just a little room with sloping walls. The room has little more than a double bed, bookcases and Tom’s collection of boots and uniforms. It’s clear that Tom was a modest, shy man who lived through his fantasies. It wasn’t until late in Tom’s life, after he established himself in the United States as an artist and a celebrity, that he was able to act out his fantasies. This was in the late 70s and 80s. He was very lucky to be able to come to the U.S. at the height of the 70s and his career.
DF: Tell me about current contributions to the collection. Is there anything notable?
DH: A woman was in here yesterday. She had a piece, a close-up of a blond man’s face with penetrating, disturbing pale eyes. She had acquired it from her mother. Her mother rented out a trailer to a man whom they knew was gay. When the man had died, it was up to her mother to clean out the trailer. Inside was a $12,000 Tom of Finland. Also, Tom’s Saloon in Hamburg commissioned Tom to paint murals on the walls, painted over later. Nonetheless, the saloon has a total of 48 Tom of Finland’s that will hopefully be contributed to the collection.
What we’re finding is that just about anybody with a Tom original is eager to contribute. There’s really a kind of cult around Tom. They subscribe not just to the sexual behavior found in his art, it’s about the warmth and kindness that is also depicted. Tom had kissing; Tom had cuddling. Tom had love.
DF: What are you most excited about?
DH: I love Tom. I get that warmth out of Tom. I do find Tom stimulating. It’s hard not too, I suppose. It’s beautifully drawn pictures of beautiful men. But Tom’s work has this Disney quality to it that’s also very pleasing. Tom’s men are all a collection of soft curves. Their large pecs, their legs, and their smiles–they become androgynous and cuddly even though they’re highly masculine. Their open, friendly faces make them seem very accessible.
As a collector said to me, it’s the wholesome quality of Tom’s men that I love. Seldom is explicitly sexual art described as wholesome, but Tom was creating a world he wanted to live in that would satisfy all his needs and desires, not just his sexual side. Therefore, he was careful to portray male tenderness and affection, love and bonding that anyone can appreciate. Women would like their men to look at them the way Tom’s men look at their partners. Looking into the face of a Tom man is to bask in the glow of acceptance. Tom came from a Nordic country known for emotional reserve, and he longed to inhabit a world where men could express their emotions freely and openly.
Sure Tom shows rough sex, but in the end everything always ends up equal and happy and is usually sealed with a kiss. Tom appeals to all romantic souls–once they get past the fisting.
DF: What can we see in the upcoming retrospective that we’ve never seen before?
DH: Like I said, everything the foundation has, we have. There will be Tom’s early fashion designs and advertising–he did a lot of advertising in Europe before doing erotic work. There is also the final sketch that’s left in his bedroom of a man in boots, left uncompleted before his death.
Tom also became fascinated with gangsters near the end; these haven’t really been seen. There’s also a lot of commissioned works that we’re still talking about putting in. Sometimes they’re not the most handsome men; they’re dressed, and they just have their arm around each other.
At this point, we’re just trying to get everything in. We’ll unearth the motherload soon.
The Complete Tom of Finland will be available Fall 2006. You can contact Taschen at info@taschen.com to contribute any information regarding original Tom of Finland works.
