On the occasion of Tom of Finland’s birthday (8th May), Tom of Finland Foundation and The Community have curated a group exhibition, supported by Diesel, presenting Tom of Finland Foundation’s permanent collection.
AllTogether explores the erotic art collection consisting of thousands of artworks, spanning multiple decades and encompassing all media and techniques. This exhibition is possible because of the Foundation’s efforts in preserving the work of Queer artists, many of whom have faced discrimination and misrepresentation due to the nature of what they create.
For thirty-seven years, Tom of Finland Foundation has been building the world’s most extensive collection of LGBTQ+ art. The diverse curation of this show highlights the stories of over seventy featured artists and comprises more than two hundred works of art from the 1940s to the present day.
The opening in Venice coincides with the first weekend of the Venice Biennale and the opening in Paris celebrates Tom’s birth date. A fully illustrated catalogue has been published.
Artists
J. EPSTEIN, AL URBAN, ANDRE, ANNIE SPRINKLE, ATTILA RICHARD LUKACS, AURÉLIEN NOBÉCOURT-ARRAS, BASTILLE, BENÔIT PRÉVOT, BOB MIZER, BRUCE RAPP, CARRINGTON GALEN, CHRIS JOHNSON, DAVE PIBEL, DOMINO, DON BACHARDY, E.M.A. STUDIO, EMMA KOHLMANN, ETIENNE, FLORIAN HETZ, GEORGE QUAINTANCE, GIO BLACK PETER, GOH MISHIMA, GREGORY MASKWA, HEATHER BENJAMIN, HECTOR SILVA, HIROSHI SHIMOYAMA, JAY JORGENSEN, JEAN FERRARO, JESS SCOTT, JIM FRENCH, JIM SHAW, JOHN WATERS, JOHNNY SMITH, KENNY KNUTSON, KENNETH ANGER, LINK, MARCEL ALCALÁ, MARCELLO LUPETTI, MATT LAMBERT, MICHAEL KIRWAN, MICHAEL REYNOLDS & MARTYN THOMPSON, MICHEL LAGUERRE, MIGUEL ANGEL REYES, MIKE KUCHAR, MINORU, MR GRUTS, NIGEL KENT, OLAF, ORSEN, PALANCA, PATRICK LEE, PETER BERLIN, PHILIP CORE, PHUC LE, R. DANIEL FOSTER, REX, RICK CASTRO, RINALDO HOPF, ROB CLARKE, SAL SALANDRA, SETH BOGART, SHEREE ROSE, SILVIA PRADA, SIMON HAAS, SLAVA MOGUTIN, STANLEY STELLAR, STEVEN REIGNS, STUART SANDFORD, SULTAN, SUSANNA LUOTO, SUZANNE SHIFFLETT, TANK, TEDDY OF PARIS, THE HUN, TOM OF FINLAND, VALENTINE, VICTOR ARIMONDI, VIKTORIA RAYKOVA, and XAVIER GICQUEL.
AllTogether sets out to convey the individual stories of the artists. At the same time, the exhibition locates parallels, interactions, and influences between Tom of Finland Foundation, Tom’s aesthetic impact, and the community of artists that have formed throughout the years around them. The selection of works considers and shows the treatment of sexuality throughout decades: from the years of censorship, the sexual revolution, the subsequent HIV/AIDS epidemic, and the explosion of information – the expressions have varied between hypermasculine TOM’s Men and dandyish self assertiveness and the motifs featured orgiastic celebration and diabolical queerness. The exhibition also highlights the historical context and the queer experience from midcentury to today, where erotic arts, the intimate encounter of art and pornography, is still navigating between the art world and gay subcultures. In AllTogether, the love of freedom transcends gender and sexuality and allows the elevation of the erotic to high art. – Sini Rinne-Kanto, Curator of The Community
More info via The Community website.