Community Updates

Community Update from the Board of Directors, Sept. 2026

Since Durk Dehner’s resignation in January 2025, the Tom of Finland Foundation has gone through significant leadership changes. We are deeply grateful to the former leaders whose care, vision, and determination built and sustained this institution. The responsibility for protecting that legacy now rests with the elected Board of Directors, who serve as volunteers. We are dedicated to strengthening the Foundation's governance, operations, and oversight as well as taking the necessary steps to serve its mission for the long term.

For many years, TOM House in Los Angeles has been the heart of the Foundation: home to the Collections, the Research Library, and the Artist-in-Residence program. We recognize how much it has meant to Tom's community and to the artists, staff, visitors, and supporters who have given it life.

After careful consideration, we have concluded that the Foundation can no longer responsibly operate as a resident organization at Mr. Dehner’s home. To keep the collection safe and properly preserved, we are moving it to a professional art storage facility. This move is already underway.

As a result, the Artist-in-Residence program is pausing. For more than 15 years, it has supported artists and enriched the local community, and we know this pause is a real loss. We apologize for any inconvenience this decision may cause. The Board is now exploring new ways to support artists, including grants, exhibitions, and residency opportunities that carry the program's spirit forward.

Our structure and location are changing, but our mission is not. We remain committed to preserving, protecting, and promoting Tom of Finland's work and legacy, and to supporting the artists and communities connected to it. Looking ahead, we are building a more sustainable and globally engaged Foundation through new digital platforms, expanded partnerships, and deeper scholarship, events, and collaborations.

To our donors, sponsors, gallery partners, artists, staff, volunteers, and advocates: we thank you, and it is your support that makes this work possible. These decisions were not made lightly, but we believe they lay the groundwork for a strong and lasting next chapter for the Foundation and for Tom's legacy.

Tom of Finland Foundation is a 501(c)(3) California nonprofit. The organization is a public charity that is not owned by any individual or entity, is meant to provide a public good, and is managed by an elected Board of Directors serving as volunteers. Our responsibility is to deliver on the stated purpose of the organization, detailed in our Articles of Incorporation: "The purposes of this corporation are to protect, preserve, promote, and advance the artistic legacy of Touko Valio Laaksonen, professionally known as Tom of Finland and the work of other artists whose work explores identity and the LGBTQ+ experience; to document, archive, and exhibit such artwork; to provide artist residencies, educational programs, community gatherings, and a welcoming environment for artists and their supporters; to resist censorship and discrimination against artists and artistic expression; and to foster greater public understanding and appreciation of art, culture, and history through public exhibitions, scholarship, and other cultural programming. This corporation is organized and operated exclusively for charitable, educational, and literary purposes within the meaning of Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code."

The Board's first responsibility is the long-term care of Tom's work and the Foundation's ability to share it with the public. Like many arts nonprofits, the Foundation has faced financial pressures that require careful choices. The Board has taken steps to align our operations with our resources so the Foundation can sustain its mission for the long term. As part of this transition, the Foundation has streamlined its operations and staffing. We are deeply grateful to everyone whose work has supported the Foundation. In June 2026, the timing of incoming funds lagged behind the Foundation's scheduled obligations, which delayed rent payments to the property owner. In the meantime, through attorneys, TOM House attempted to serve an eviction notice on the Foundation because it deferred two months' rent. According to this notice, the Foundation had less than 10 days to vacate or face legal action. An outside professional assessment also identified conditions at the property that were not suitable for the long-term safety of the collection or for public programming. Acting on that assessment, the Board voted to relocate the collection to a professional, climate-controlled facility that meets museum standards for conservation and security, and comply with the wishes of its owner to leave the house as soon as possible. These decisions reflect our duty of care to the collection and to the community it serves. TOM House holds a meaningful place in Tom's story and in the history of our community, and we honor that. We will share updates as plans develop.

Since the AiR program has historically been hosted at TOM House, AiR will be paused until its operations have been stabilized. The Foundation is exploring new opportunities for artists such as grant-making, exhibition support, and a traveling residency program with an intent to relaunch as soon as possible. While the Board reviews pathways and financial feasibility for continuation, we encourage individuals (especially former AiR) to propose projects and programs they would like the Foundation to support.

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We know these changes raise important questions. We welcome them and will share additional information as circumstances and confidentiality obligations permit.

With gratitude,

The Board of Directors
Tom of Finland Foundation

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