Steampunk – An inspiration from clockworks
05. Feb, 2010 
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For those of you who are unfamiliar yet with the Steampunk concept, this is a sub-genre of science-fiction that relates to old technologies, such as steam powered vehicles, zeppelins, mechanical clockworks, dusty goggles, analog computers, steam pipes, valves and mostly anything that can be manipulated by steam ,all generally from the Victorian era. Â Similar inventions, fantastic ones, are found in the works of Jules Verne and H.G. Welles.
I found about it about a year ago and got absorbed by what I was calling “a new currentâ€; so I started looking for more info about it. I found some really cool concepts and ideas, which I’m about to share with you.
One of the websites that turn Steampunk literally into a way of life is www.steampunklab.com with their motto “Inventions of a curious sortâ€. They actually turn modern technology into old-style, bronze-plated pieces of art! Here are some of their products:
A laptop turned into a type-writer looking gadget. I sure want one of these!
A very cool night-lamp. Wouldn’t be great to have these lighting your evening lecture?
A brass clockwork spider. I bet you’d want to see it crawl, eh?
A sample of Steampunk clothing: lady’s artisan apron.
Steampunk isn’t all work and no play. Here is some nice artwork. The heart has functional mechanics!
Creative jewelry: a Steampunk pipe ring.
An old watch! Imagine going places with one of these on your hand!
Here are some more sites where you can find equally exceptional goodies.
www.steampunkmagazine.com, a dedicated magazine, currently at issue #6. I’m not going to throw in spoilers about the content, check it out yourself. I can tell you this much: it’s a pretty good lecture. You can download it for free in .pdf format from the website.
http://thesteampunkhome.blogspot.com/
I also looked into digital art and found some really cool concepts. Here is some stuff I stumbled upon.
A Steampunk gunman, found here. “The name’s Punk… Steampunk.â€
A mechanical woman concept, found here.
Alice in Wonderland Steampunk digital painting concept I found here. Great work!
A Steampunk dragon I found here.
More Steampunk awesomeness from here. A 3D work.
Brain Tower, found here. Also a 3D work.
Automation, found here. 3D work. Again.
Pixel art, found here.
Another pixel art, from here.
A Steampunk Gothic cuff watch found here. It’s a real thing and can be purchased from here.
The really disappointing thing about it is that it’s not yet known to the masses. I asked lots of people, drawing teachers and even designers about it and all I got was: “Steampunk? What’s that?â€, “Never heard of it. What is it about?â€. Very few knew about it, but they only checked it out just for pure knowledge.
I wish I’d see more of this, for it has much resources and inspiration to offer. Wouldn’t you?
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