Date/Time
Date(s) - 13th Jan 2023 - 25th Feb 2023
All Day

Location
David Kordansky Gallery

Categories

• Exhibitions - TOM

Tuesday–Saturday, 10a–6p

NEW YORK

TOM OF FINLAND, Untitled (from “Setting Sail”), 1974, graphite on paper, 12 1/4 x 8 5/8 inches (31.1 x 21.9 cm), framed: 17 5/8 x 14 x 1 1/2 inches (44.8 x 35.6 x 3.8 cm). Photo: Jeff McLane

Tom of Finland: Highway Patrol, Greasy Rider, and Other Selected Works features collages and drawings by the iconic artist. At the center of the exhibition is a full suite of impeccably rendered drawings from the series Kake vol. 21 – “Greasy Rider” (1978) and Kake vol. 22 – “Highway Patrol” (1980), both of which reference Tom’s collages and evolved from the artist’s preparatory sketches. These rarely exhibited panels are part of a larger collection of 26 Kake graphic novels made between 1968–1986. Titled after the comics’ protagonist and the artist’s alter ego, the illustrations showcase Tom’s diverse material approaches to his meticulous figurations and underscore the intricacies of his artistic process. First published in 1968, the Kake series was revolutionary for the time and quickly inspired a broad scope of Gay and Queer zines to come. The fantastical stories and iconic imagery created a form that inspired sexual awakenings, emboldened members of the Gay community to have more agency over their sexuality, and eventually extended into, and influenced, real-world Queer liberation movements. Tom of Finland: Highway Patrol, Greasy Rider, and Other Selected Works offers a nearly complete glimpse into the transformative desire-driven approach to artmaking that has long distinguished the persona and vision of Tom of Finland.