The wave of Tom of Finland content in 2017 prompted a critical reevaluation of his work. In a world saturated with internet porn, critics questioned the enduring power of his black-and-white drawings. As an article in Vice argued, the transgressive appeal lies in his masterful interplay of pride and shame. In the 1940s and 50s, by drawing "bulging throngs of well-endowed men," Laaksonen was pushing against the assumption that masculinity was antithetical to homosexuality. He created a world where hyper-masculine, macho figures abandoned themselves without shame to group sex, providing not just arousal but a powerful antidote to the repressive, life-threatening homophobia of the era. As the Guardian noted, his subversive drawings ridiculed authority figures and directly inspired the aesthetic of global icons like Freddie Mercury and the Village People.
As the timeline shifts to the 1960s and 70s, the film’s palette warms up, mirroring the sexual revolution. The Finland of the film remains somewhat stoic and cold, but Touko’s world expands through his mail correspondence with Los Angeles.
The film begins in the stark, dangerous reality of World War II. Touko Laaksonen, a decorated officer in the Finnish Army, finds himself in a world of hyper-masculinity that is both oppressive and deeply inspiring. tom of finland -2017-
The institutional high point of the year, however, was "Tom of Finland: Bold Journey" at the in Helsinki. The exhibition featured hundreds of works and received extensive coverage in the international art press. Critic Thomas McMullan noted for Frieze that the show cemented Laaksonen’s legacy as a "national treasure" who had been criminalized twice over (as a homosexual and an erotic artist) during his life.
Why does 2017 deserve special focus? It is the year that Tom of Finland completed his migration from a subcultural secret to a global icon. By the 2010s, his silhouetted men with broad shoulders and tight pants had already been absorbed by fashion (Saint Laurent, Calvin Klein), music (Frank Ocean’s Blonde ), and pop art. But 2017 was different: it was the year that institutions came to him. A major Tokyo museum, a European postal service, and a national film board all simultaneously decided that his work was worthy of their platforms. This cultural ratification occurred at a specific historical moment—just two years after the US Supreme Court legalized gay marriage, and amidst a global backlash from resurgent far-right movements. Tom of Finland’s exaggerated, confident, sexually sovereign male figures offered a defiant counter-narrative. They were not victims; they were heroes of their own erotic desire. The wave of Tom of Finland content in
Through an elegant leading performance by Pekka Strang, Tom of Finland demonstrates how personal trauma and societal persecution can be masterfully transmuted into defiant, liberating art. Plot Architecture: From Post-War Shadows to California Sun
One hundred years since the pencil first met the paper in a small Finnish port town, and still the leather creaks. In the 1940s and 50s, by drawing "bulging
In a way, this was the final realization of Tom’s fantasy. He always dreamed of a world where men could love men openly, publicly, and joyously. In 2017, that world was not real—the news was too dark for that. But for a few minutes a day, as a teenager scrolled through a re-drawn Tom of Finland man fighting a dragon or holding hands with a boyfriend, the fantasy lived.
Part of the reason Tom of Finland is so impressive in its transcendence of biopic tedium is that it entirely forgoes the birth-to- image for Tom of Finland
: In post-war Helsinki, where homosexuality was criminalized, Laaksonen lived a double life—working in advertising by day and sketching "dirty drawings" in secret at night.
2017 is notable for several converging developments that amplified public and critical engagement with Laaksonen’s work: