Tom of Finland Foundation celebrating 40th Anniversary with multiple Palm Springs events

The local events aim to raise awareness and support for the Foundation, which helps promote Tom of Finland’s artwork and supports erotic arts and LGBTQ artists worldwide.

Jesse Rosenberg (L) and Ken Avedisian at TOM House

Palm Springs will come alive with Leather, art, and celebration in just a few short weeks as Tom of Finland Foundation (ToFF) marks its 40th anniversary with a week of events from 23rd October-3rd November in collaboration with Leather Pride Week.

Finnish artist Tom of Finland is famous for his iconic, highly stylized depictions of homoerotic masculinity. The nonprofit Foundation was founded in 1984 by the artist and his partner, Durk Dehner.

The Foundation holds events worldwide and has been present at Palm Springs Leather Pride event since around 2010, hosting a booth and presenting artwork. The Foundation’s 40th anniversary is the perfect time to expand that presence in Palm Springs.

The Palm Springs events aim to raise awareness and support for the Foundation, which helps promote Tom of Finland’s artwork and supports erotic arts and LGBTQ artists.

The week will open with a talk by Dehner, who serves as ToFF President & Cofounder.

The talk, Protecting, Preserving and Promoting the Erotic Arts with Durk Dehner, will be held at the Mizell Center on 23rd October at 6p. A reception with Dehner follows the talk at 5:30 p.m.

Concurrent with the talk at Mizell will be a public reception and exhibition opening at Artworks Gallery (610 South Belardo Rd.) called Made at TOM House, featuring works by more than a dozen artists from around the world who have participated in the Foundation’s Artist-in-Residence Program in Los Angeles.

From left: artwork by Xiaobing Fan, Donald C. Shorter, Jr., and Jacob Love

The following evening, 24th October, a keynote panel discussion and presentation, Two Toms, will be held at the Palm Springs Cultural Center. It will feature Dehner and world-renowned photographer Tom Bianchi, who expanded upon and amplified the artistic voice and perspective Tom of Finland pioneered.

The panel discussion will be followed by a cocktail hour featuring Tom of Finland Organic Vodka, during which attendees can preview TOM OF FINLAND Visions of Desire, an exhibition of original Tom of Finland drawings, many of which have never been seen in public.

The works will be organized chronologically from the 1940s into the 1980s so that viewers can see the progression of his work and the many phases of his life. The exhibition will be open to the public through 3rd November.

The week will also feature a film screening of Tom of Finland, a fictionalized biography of Tom’s life released in 2017 that received international acclaim.

Before the screening of the full-length feature film, there will be a 20-minute preview of a feature-length film called House of Leather, a documentary created by Jameson Rockmore, a past Artist-in-Residence of Tom of Finland Foundation.

The film tracks the experience of three individuals, one from China, one from Thailand, and one from America, who come to TOM House and their experiences of what they come to learn about themselves and how they learn about their artistic practice.

In addition, Tool Shed will host a cigar social on Saturday 26th October from 2-5p.

It’s not difficult to imagine why a celebration is in order.

SEE THE COMPLETE ARTICLE BY MAGGIE MILES

Published: 18th October 2024

Categorised in: Events, News