The Image-of-the-Year
will go on auction on
March 1, 2005.
Bids will be
accepted until 11:59 PM,
November 30, 2005.
The winner will
be determined on
December 1, 2005.
Bids may be presented
by e-mail, telephone, mail, or
in person at the Foundation and some Foundation events.
Residents of California
will be subject to California sales tax.
|
The Tom of Finland Foundation has selected this piece
of art by their namesake artist, TOM OF FINLAND, as the image to represent
the Foundation in print this calendar year.
To make this item an extra special addition to your
collection, we will be including a copy of each posterwhere this artwork
is used during the year.
The artwork will be displayed:
Please visit the Foundation's Calendar
for dates and times.
This preliminary rough sketch is untitled and was executed in graphite
in 1987. The intended display dimensions are roughly 8.5" x 10.25".
It has been stored with a selection of other drawings by the artist
and is now finally being released for the public to see and have an
opportunity to own. It was one of many preliminary drawings that Tom
created over the last three years of his drawing career. It was Tom's
plan to take the work onto a finished drawing.
The Foundation is placing this piece in a on-going auction
from now until November 30, 2005 — at which time the sale will
be awarded to the highest bidder. The opening bid for this work is
$3,000.00 and bids are accepted in $100.00 increments.
This drawing is being offered as the Image-of-the-Year for it reflects
the classic Tom man in his appearance. This military man's demeanor
presents a very welcoming smile! Tom’s method of working was
to give himself time to create works in this prelim style and would
sometimes work on several in one evening. He would then, at a later
date, go back to them, and — if he still felt good about the
initial creation — would go about with the final execution of
the work.
At the time the Tom of Finland Foundation was being established,
Touko Laaksonen (aka Tom of Finland) brought to America with him a
large body of work including over 1,000 drawings. His business partner,
Durk Dehner, was so impressed with the quality of what he saw that
he convinced the artist to show them to Feature Gallery in New York
with the hope of the gallery representing Tom. Soon after that, the
work of Tom of Finland was being exhibited and sold until the artist's
death in November of 1991. His work continues to sell — a finished
drawing that may have had a price tag of $350 in 1978 can be seen
on the market today for over $9,000.
The Foundation chose five hundred rough drawings, studies, and preliminary
sketches that the artist brought over from Finland to keep as part
of its Permanent Collection. From the remainder there are selected
pieces that have been and are being released individually, on a periodic
basis, for sale. These sales are handled by Cliff Benjamin's gallery,
Western Project, located
in the Culver City area of Los Angeles.
Bids are accepted at the address below.
by E-MAIL administration@TomOfFinlandFoundation.org
or VOICE 213.250.1685
— FAX 213.481.2092
or MAIL Tom
of Finland Foundation
P.O. Box 26658
Los Angeles, CA 90026, U.S.A.
or IN PERSON at the Foundation
(call for directions & appointment) and selected Foundation events
during 2005.
