I’ve recently come across an art movement that has been gaining popularity over the past 10 years or so somewhat under the radar.
Steampunk is a subculture of people who take modern day objects such as computers, cars, and headphones and turn them into turn of the century Victorian technology. If you think back to movies like Brazil, The Adventures of Baron Munchausen, and The City of Lost Children, you’ll get an idea of the aesthetics these artists are going for.
In a world filled with throw away technology and iPhones that are almost obsolete before they’re sold, these pieces of art represent a time when objects had a sense of permanence and timeless value.
The term “Steampunk” was coined by science fiction author K.W. Jeter in 1987. Since then the Steampunk art movement has expanded immensely on the internet and YouTube.
A few noteworthy Steampunk do-it-yourselfers:
Arguably the most widely known artist/inventor is Datamancer, among some of his incredible works is his laptop that starts with a crank of an antique clock winder!
Check out the video here!
He acquires most of his parts online through ebay and Amazon and spends his days hand crafting each antique typewriter key, decorative brass edging and stained wood on the computer keyboards he sells. Another Steampunk tinkerer is Hieronymous Isambard “Jake” von Slatt who modifies anything from scooters to flat screen monitors.
And yet another group of creatives made a Steampunk Treehouse at the annual Burning Man Festival.
The more I search for this lesser known world where antiques and technology collide, the more I find. A young inventor of all things metal and steam powered is I-Wei Huang who makes steam powered robots.
It seems Steampunk has become a way of life for some folks and I for one applaud them for their efforts and creative ingenuity.
Steampunk is a fascinating new development in the embracing and rejection of new technology. It will be interesting to see if it will influence style and fashion of companies like Apple or Dell.
I seen this stuff in Bizarre magazine a few months back and was blown away. It’s really sweet.
I am not a big fan of this particular form of art, but in general I do support anything new in art, like pop art movement was and still is.