Leather Dads, Leather Lads at Tom’s House

Two recent book signings brought out both the leather royalty of L.A. and a fresh crop of new devotees.

To celebrate the recent release of TOM HOUSE: Tom of Finland in Los Angeles from Rizzoli, there were two book signing parties: the official party at the David Kordansky Gallery in L.A. and the continued fun at Tom of Finland Foundation in the city’s Echo Park district. Our favorite event photographer, Miguel Angel Reyes, was there to catch the historic convergence of legendary artists and leather men, as well as a new generation of leather enthusiasts.

TOM House

TOM House

David Kordansky Gallery

David Kordansky Gallery

The book is an immersive glimpse into the private, domestic world of one of the 20th-century’s most revolutionary artists. Nestled in a leafy, residential section of Los Angeles is the house where Tom of Finland (Touko Laaksonen, 1920–1991) lived and worked during the last decade of his life, it is an extraordinary place — part shrine, part haven, part art-historical archive, and part utopian collective. Still occupied by the men who resided there with Tom and dedicated themselves to preserving his legacy, the House serves as a living tribute to the artist’s astonishing oeuvre and his radical vision of unapologetic homoerotic sexuality.

More about TOM HOUSE: Tom of Finland in Los Angeles

Published: 22nd March 2016

Categorised in: Friends of Tom