Touko Laaksonen ("Tom of Finland")

Touko Valio Laaksonen, best known by his pseudonym Tom of Finland, was a Finnish artist known for his stylized highly masculinized homoerotic fetish art, and for his influence on late twentieth century gay culture. He is the father of this Village People type of leather and uniform type of gay genre.

He has been called the "most influential creator of gay pornographic images" by cultural historian Joseph W. Slade. Over the course of four decades, he produced some 3500 illustrations, mostly featuring men with exaggerated primary and secondary sex traits, wearing tight or partially removed clothing.

Chances are, Touko, or Tom, is the single most renowned Finnish painter / graphical artist worldwide ever. When the Finnish Mail announced they are about to release a set of stamps honoring Tom of Finland, the print they figured to release was sold months in advance prior to the first date. Now you can purchase Tom of Finland linen, Tom of Finland coffee, Tom of Finland umbrellas... Tom of Finland most anything.

There is a documentary of Tom of Finland in The Internet Movie Database from 1991 called Daddy and the Muscle Academy. In 2017 a movie titled Tom of Finland was released.

• https://www.iltalehti.fi/viihdeuutiset/201806282201041418_vd.shtml (an interview of Kenneth "Wiki" Wickman on Tom of Finland and his death in Iltalehti, 30 June 2018)