TL;DR
Get art and craft supplies delivered free — and shop member deals
- Fast, free delivery on millions of items
- Access to Prime Big Deal Days deals on October 6–7
- Prime Video, Amazon Music and more included
Forty-one former artist residents of the Tom of Finland Foundation have published an open letter criticizing what they describe as a lack of transparency and the abrupt interruption of programs, including the Artist-in-Residence program. The foundation’s board response and the program’s current status are not provided in the report.
Forty-one former artist residents of the Tom of Finland Foundation have issued an open letter calling on its board to address what they describe as a lack of transparency and the abrupt interruption of programs, including the Artist-in-Residence program. Their appeal places the future of the Los Angeles nonprofit’s support for contemporary queer and erotic artists at the center of an acrimonious dispute involving the board and a co-founder, according to Hyperallergic’s report.
The former residents say the Artist-in-Residence program was discontinued without prior communication or warning. Their letter also alleges that “nearly the entire staff” of TOM House was laid off in June. Those accounts are claims made by the letter’s signatories; the material provided does not include a response from the foundation’s board or independent confirmation of the staffing details.
The letter asks the board to safeguard the foundation’s mission by continuing both its work preserving Tom of Finland’s art and legacy and its support for new generations of queer and erotic artists. The former residents cite a range of activities they want maintained, including residency opportunities, mentorship, exhibitions, research and access to the foundation’s archive.
Carta Monir, a 2022 resident who coordinated the letter, told Hyperallergic the board was “refusing to answer any questions.” Monir said the letter was written because public scrutiny seemed necessary to obtain transparency. The report describes a dispute between the board and a co-founder but does not detail the origins of that conflict or identify specific board decisions beyond the concerns raised by residents.
The Residency’s Role in Queer Art
The disagreement concerns more than the management of a historic collection. The foundation has also served as a place for contemporary queer artists to make work, connect with peers and engage with an archive of erotic art. If the residency and related activities have stopped, artists may lose access to institutional support and a space tied to an influential part of queer visual culture.
The former residents’ letter frames the dispute as a question of whether the foundation can preserve Tom of Finland’s legacy while continuing to support living artists. The report establishes that the group has raised that concern publicly; it does not establish what programs will continue, whether they have been permanently ended, or how the board intends to carry out the foundation’s mission.
As an affiliate, we earn on qualifying purchases.
From Tom’s Archive to TOM House
The foundation was established in 1984 to preserve the work and legacy of Tom of Finland, the artist name of Touko Laaksonen, who lived from 1920 to 1991. His erotic drawings of hypermasculine men—including sailors, lumberjacks and leather-clad bikers—became widely recognized images within queer culture.
Over time, the organization expanded its activities beyond preserving Tom’s work, supporting contemporary artists through exhibitions and acquisitions. In 2011, it began an artist residency at its Echo Park headquarters, a Craftsman home known as TOM House. Former residents now say the residency was interrupted without warning, linking the current dispute to the nonprofit’s broader role as a home for both an artistic legacy and new work.
““the lack of transparency and abrupt interruption of several programs by the current administration””
— The 41 former artist residents, in their open letter
As an affiliate, we earn on qualifying purchases.
The Board’s Response and Program Status
The supplied report does not include a statement from the foundation’s board addressing the letter, the alleged layoffs or the residency program’s status. It is not clear whether the Artist-in-Residence program has been permanently discontinued, suspended or changed, or whether any replacement support for artists is planned.
The former residents’ statements about staffing and communication remain attributed claims in the report. The reasons for the dispute between the board and a co-founder, the financial or organizational circumstances behind the changes, and the board’s plans for the archive and other programs are also not specified.
As an affiliate, we earn on qualifying purchases.
Answers the Residents Are Seeking
The immediate next step is a response from the foundation’s board clarifying the program changes and the organization’s plans. The former residents’ letter asks the board to commit to ongoing support for queer and erotic artists through residencies, mentorship, exhibitions, research and archive access.
No board reply, public meeting or timeline for a decision is included in the report. The dispute’s next developments will depend on whether the foundation responds and whether it sets out a plan for the residency and related artist programs.
archival storage for art collections
As an affiliate, we earn on qualifying purchases.
As an affiliate, we earn on qualifying purchases.
Key Questions
Who issued the open letter?
Forty-one former artist residents of the Tom of Finland Foundation signed the letter. Carta Monir, a 2022 resident, coordinated it, according to Hyperallergic.
What are the former residents objecting to?
They cite what they describe as a lack of transparency, the interruption of programs, and the discontinuation of the Artist-in-Residence program without prior notice. They also allege that nearly the entire TOM House staff was laid off in June.
Has the foundation confirmed that the residency is permanently closed?
The report does not provide a statement from the foundation confirming a permanent closure. The former residents say the program was discontinued, but its current and future status is not established in the supplied material.
What does the letter ask the board to do?
It asks the board to preserve Tom of Finland’s legacy while maintaining support for new queer and erotic artists, including through residencies, mentorship, exhibitions, research and archive access.
Source: rss
Fall Picks
fall essentials
As an affiliate, we earn on qualifying purchases.
