The Little Book of Tom. Blue Collar From the very beginning, Tom knew that his hands were not made for delicate work. They were built for the rougher things, for gripping, for holding, for building. He didn't have the patience for paperwork, for numbers that swam before his eyes, for the polite nods and insincere smiles that filled the offices. No, Tom belonged out here, under the open sky, where the sweat on his brow was a sign of honest labor. He liked the smell of sawdust, the clang of metal, the solid feel of a hammer in his hand. He understood things that could be touched, things that could be fixed, things that could be made strong. His father, a man of few words but strong hands himself, had taught him the value of a day's work, and the dignity that came with it. Tom carried that lesson with him, a quiet pride in his shoulders. He wasn't seeking fame or fortune, just the satisfaction of a job well done, of something tangible left behind. There were long hours, of course, and the aches that settled deep in his bones at the end of the day. But there was also the camaraderie of the crew, the shared jokes and the quiet understanding that comes from working side by side. They were a brotherhood, bound by sweat and effort, building not just structures, but a life. Tom was a man of the earth, connected to the pulse of the physical world. He found his poetry in the curve of a well-cut plank, his music in the rhythm of the saw. And in the end, that was enough. It was more than enough. It was everything.

Only for adults over 18 years old.

About the book: Whether cowboy, construction worker, lumberjack, docker or trucker: Tom of Finland's hard-working macho men practically consist only of erections, have graduated from the Muscle Academy, and are used to lifting heavy things. Our catchy volume takes a deep look into the tight jeans of real guys.

Biography: Touko Laaksonen, the boy who would become famous as Tom of Finland (1920-1991), began drawing cartoons at the age of five. Touko knew early on that women interested him less than men, so it's hardly surprising that his preferred models were real guys from his native Finland. He studied art in Helsinki and was successful in the Finnish advertising industry – but in secret, he continued to work on his increasingly erotic drawings of hyper-masculine men. When he published some of his homoerotic images in the American magazine Physique Pictorial under the pseudonym Tom of Finland in 1957, the legend was born. By the late sixties, Tom's "dirty drawings" had become a kind of norm for homosexual art, and Tom's men the template for a new gay self-confidence. Tom's art continues to play an important role today in terms of self-confidence, positive self-representation, and opening up the gay community.
Dian Hanson is an editor and author at TASCHEN and has already published over 50 books. In addition to ARNOLD, her recent titles include The Art of Pin-up, Masterpieces of Fantasy Art, and The Fantastic Worlds of Frank Frazetta.

Pages: 192
Dian Hanson
First publication: 15/12/2022
Language of the book: Multilingual (English, French, German)
Edition: INT
ISBN: 978-3-8365-8865-2
Themes: Sexy Books and Pop Culture
Dimensions: 14.0 cm x 19.5 cm, Weight 0.42 kg

Der TASCHEN Verlag zählt zu den renommiertesten Kunst- und Bildbandverlagen weltweit. Mit einem vielfältigen Programm von Kunst, Fotografie, Design, Architektur, Mode, Film und Popkultur bis hin zu Sammlerwerken steht TASCHEN seit Jahrzehnten für höchste Qualität und außergewöhnliche Gestaltung. Gemeinsam mit COCOLI bietet der Verlag nun eine Auswahl an Coffee Table Büchern mit kleinen Schönheitsfehlern an, die Kunst- und Designliebhabern nachhaltigen Zugang zu inspirierenden Werken ermöglicht.