Tom of Finland Store is pleased to present Slava Mogutin: XXX Files, an online exhibition of Mogutin’s photography and video art spanning two decades. Declared by Dazed & Confused “Russia’s greatest art rebel,” Mogutin gained international acclaim for his activism as well as candid documentation of queer lives in his native country, in the United States and throughout his extensive travels around the world.

XXX Files is comprised of photographs from different stages of Mogutin’s wide-ranging oeuvre, from commissioned magazine shoots to intimate portraits and nudes of fellow artists and friends, lovers and collaborators, alongside the occasional hustlers and go-go dancers. Many of these works are shown here for the first time.

In his photography, performance and film work, Mogutin manifests his affinity for collaboration with creative muses such as: Bruce LaBruce, Brian Kenny, Gio Black Peter, François Sagat, Matthieu Charneau, Edmund White, Katya Zamolodchikova, and Susanne Oberbeck of No Bra.

This exhibition is the artist’s response to the rampant censorship across social media platforms, publishing and public venues, with Tumblr becoming the latest casualty of this troubling trend:

For me, the personal is political and the political is personal. At the time when our fundamental constitutional rights are under attack, I believe that queer imagery can serve as the most effective weapon against hypocrisy, bigotry, and censorship. When they censor my work either on social media or in real life, my response is always—double up on the queer, double up on the fight and what they don’t want to see. I want to shine light on the darkest corners of human nature and sexuality as a way to understand and peacefully coexist with each other, because being different is a blessing, not a curse.

Mogutin’s XXX Files are available through Tom of Finland Store as signed, limited edition prints in conjunction with the exhibition.