Steampunk is the intersection of technology and romance. It's
fashion, an aesthetic, a genre of fiction, a musical style, and a burgeoning
sub-culture.
Steampunk is a sub-genre of science fiction, fantasy, alternate history,
and speculative fiction that came into prominence during the 1980s and early
1990s. Steampunk involves a
setting where steam power is still widely used—usually the Victorian era Britain—that
incorporates elements of either science fiction or fantasy. Works of steampunk
often feature anachronistic technology or futuristic innovations as Victorians
may have envisioned them; based on a Victorian perspective on fashion, culture,
architectural style, art, etc. This technology may include such fictional
machines as those found in the works of H. G. Wells and Jules Verne.
Other examples of steampunk contain alternative history-style presentations
of such technology as lighter-than-air airships, analog computers, or such
digital mechanical computers as Charles Babbage and Ada Lovelace's Analytical
engine.
Various modern utilitarian objects have been modded by individual artisans
into a pseudo-Victorian mechanical "steampunk" style, and a number of
visual and musical artists have been described as steampunk.
We have included some
examples of how you may incorporate Steampunk into your aesthetic at the
slideshow below.
