Before I look at anyone else's comments or get the link I have in mind to show you:
Steampunk is, I think, an art style, in the same way that Art Deco is a style, meaning it can be expressed through fashion, design, decor, and so forth.
It has its roots in Jules Verne's 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea and H.G. Wells, although I am not sure when it became cohesive enough to merit the name--I first saw it used about 10 years ago.
It is an elaborate, ornate, complicated, elegant style that pays close attention to detail.
When applied to fashion, it's similar to Victorian style, or for something more recent, think the styles of dress in "League of Extraordinary Gentleman". Think top hats and ornate pocket watches, multiple buttons, canes with a fancy metal head.
Objects in the style are usually very ornate, and when the object is high-tech, there's usually a marriage of the high-tech function with elaborate decoration, heavy on natural materials like wood, and brass. Think high-tech meets English Colonial.
In literature, Randall Garrett's Lord Darcy would most definitely qualify as steampunk although the term didn't exist at the time. :)
Now that I've made the comment, here is a link of a steampunk keyboard someone made, which is really cool. :)
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ninetydegrees
no subject
2010-11-17 16:58 (UTC)Steampunk is, I think, an art style, in the same way that Art Deco is a style, meaning it can be expressed through fashion, design, decor, and so forth.
It has its roots in Jules Verne's 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea and H.G. Wells, although I am not sure when it became cohesive enough to merit the name--I first saw it used about 10 years ago.
It is an elaborate, ornate, complicated, elegant style that pays close attention to detail.
When applied to fashion, it's similar to Victorian style, or for something more recent, think the styles of dress in "League of Extraordinary Gentleman". Think top hats and ornate pocket watches, multiple buttons, canes with a fancy metal head.
Objects in the style are usually very ornate, and when the object is high-tech, there's usually a marriage of the high-tech function with elaborate decoration, heavy on natural materials like wood, and brass. Think high-tech meets English Colonial.
In literature, Randall Garrett's Lord Darcy would most definitely qualify as steampunk although the term didn't exist at the time. :)
Now that I've made the comment, here is a link of a steampunk keyboard someone made, which is really cool. :)
http://mbarrick.livejournal.com/813718.html