Finnish postage stamps to feature Tom of Finland images

The Finnish postal service, Itella, has announced the release of a set of 33 commemorative stamps featuring works of art by Tom of Finland.

Tom of Finland, real name Touko Laaksonen, became known in the 1960s and 1970s for his incredibly homoerotic illustrations featuring muscular men in tight clothing and sometimes very suggestive positions.

The Finnish artist, who has been called the world’s “most influential creator of gay pornographic images”, passed away in 1991.

In a press release, Itella said of Tom of Finland and the stamps: “His emphatically masculine homoerotic drawings have attained iconic status in their genre and had an influence on, for instance, pop culture and fashion.

“In his works, Tom of Finland utilized the self-irony and humour typical of subcultures. The drawings on the stamp sheet represent strong and confident male figures typical of their designer.”

Itella’s Tom of Finland stamps will be available to buy in Finland from September 8, and will coincide with an exhibition of the artist’s work at the country’s Postal Museum. Check out two of the stamps below.

Meanwhile, the US postal service is to release a stamp featuring late LGBT activist Harvey Milk on May 22.

The release of the stamp coincides with Harvey Milk Day, and will make the iconic politician the first LGBT public official to feature on a US stamp.

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