Steampunk brings together romance, technology, the Victorian era (the steam) and rebellion (the punk). Its origins are in 19th century science fiction literature and authors like H.G. Wells and Jules Verne whose novels were set in Victorian England but revolved around futuristic machines from other worlds, like in War of the Worlds, or machines that transported people to fantastical places, like in Journey to the Centre of the Earth.
The modern term 'steampunk' is said to have been created by K.W. Jeter in 1987 in this citation:
"Personally I think Victorian fantasies are going to be the next big thing, as long as we can come up with a fitting collective term for Power, Blaylock and myself. Something based on the appropriate technology of that era; like 'steam-punks' perhaps." (1987, K.W. Jeter in Locus, Apr. 57/2).
Modern steampunk began as a subculture of cyberpunk but has developed into a culture of its own, with modern examples of steampunk literature and media being seen in the works of Philip Pullman, the TV show Warehouse 13 and the comic series The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen.
Steampunk's popularity grew thanks to a panel held in 2012 at Stan Lee's (Marvel co-creator) Comikaze Expo. The title of the panel discussion was Steampunk 'Super'-Culture: Symbiosis Between Various Subcultures and Fandoms. The panel concluded that steampunk was becoming a super culture because of its inclusion, diversity and incorporation of other subcultures such as romantic goth, neo-Victorianism, and cyberpunk. A further panel discussion was held in July 2013 called Steampunk as a SUPER-culture: A Symbiosis between various Fandoms and Subcultures. Steampunk was embedding itself firmly within Gothdom.
Steampunk fashion has few rules and makes use of; gowns, corsets, petticoats, bustles, vests, top hats, jackets, coats, trousers, parasols, gas masks, goggles, spats, military outfits, monocles, timepieces, cogs, wheels, gears, ray guns, compasses, space helmets, canes and much, much more - whew!!
Anything that can be put together to create clothing, jewellery and accessories with a Victorian, futuristic, industrial, steam-inspired appearance can be called steampunk. Styles range from the subtle to the outrageous and even modern accessories such as mobile phones can be given a Victorian appearance - see Warehouse 13 for inspiration.
The largest European steampunk event is Weekend at the Asylum which has been held in Lincoln, England every September since 2009. The event is hosted by the Victorian Steampunk Society, a not for profit organisation which promotes steampunk as a genre, a community and an art form.
In January 2013 IBM conducted a sentiment analysis of more than half a million posts on message boards, blogs and social media and news sites. The results predicted that steampunk will 'conquer the earth' by going mainstream in the next two years. The analysis predicted that the style will move from high cost production to low cost, mass production. The high street has already started to anticipate the growing popularity, with Japan, in particular embracing the steampunk themed Lolita and Aristrocrat styles.
The Victorian Steampunk Society says, in their 2011 update of their article What is Steampunk?, that the steampunk community is made up of people with a strong DIY ethic who value craftsmanship, sustainability and durability. I imagine they will be feeling somewhat concerned about IBM's analysis of the future of steampunk.
The article includes a quote from a global group that attempted to define steampunk:
"Steampunk is a creative social movement that draws inspiration from Victorian and pre-war history in an anachronistic mix of science fiction, modern values and a sense of fun."
The society stresses that this not a definition of steampunk as it is a personal thing that should be defined by the individual, but they say it is 'a fine place to start'.
