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| Pierre Matter - "Hommage à Barcelone" (2010) |
I'm a Steampunk lover. I have to admit. Why? I guess it's about the same notion which I described in previous posts. This notion is more like a kind of feeling. A dream. Imaging a world, which is set apart from any known human culture, or things invented by humans, empty and abstract. An endless space, ready to be filled with my own landscapes, objects and artificial life. The absolute space of creativity.
It may sound quiet strange, but if there would be any objects in this space at all, left or created in there by somebody or whatever, they could easily be Steampunk-like. A giant iron kraken, emerging from the water, or a robot, wearing a big hat, glasses and a dress coat from the 19th century with mechanical joints, whatever this Steampunk visions might be, I'd love to build them and welcome them in my personal realm of imagination. You too?
Museums. Basically, I always liked them. I still like the presence of old objects or stuffed animals, the smell of past times. It literally haunts me, just as I love the old, classic horror movies, set in an english, victorian country residence. It's the patina of things that fascinates me, and the 19th century has its very own charm. Combined with my passion for robots and monsters of nearly every kind, these preferences seem to be the perfect conditions for a true Steampunk lover.
I still think about Tik Tok. Dorothy's metallic (but living) companion in "Return to Oz" (1985), who can think, speak and fight despite his clumsy and rather slow moving stature. (Believe it or not - Ironically, I even started to like mustaches a bit more, just because of this purely artificial movie character, although I never did before.) When Dorothy discovers him in a hidden corner of a dead city, Tik Tok has been "sleeping", covered with dust for an unknown period of time. She first has to wind him up like a clockwork. I also very like this clockwork-like nature of him. An artificial soldier, skilled and loyal, but always dependent on someone who "resets" him. Of course it's a very simple analogy, nevertheless very effective in my opinion. Tik Tok often appears like a statue or metallic sculpture, resurrected by Dorothy. The sculptural variation of Steampunk culture is very, very popular. Specifically objects, weapons and installments, made by people who adore Steampunk and the playful possibilities of it, are wide spread on the internet and in exhibitions. Personally, I prefer the images and movies, referred to the Steampunk universe, but the sculptural aspect is undeniable and essential too.
I'm gonna show you some examples of Steampunk objects, some of them already quiet famous, not only among the Steampunk lovers:
Museums. Basically, I always liked them. I still like the presence of old objects or stuffed animals, the smell of past times. It literally haunts me, just as I love the old, classic horror movies, set in an english, victorian country residence. It's the patina of things that fascinates me, and the 19th century has its very own charm. Combined with my passion for robots and monsters of nearly every kind, these preferences seem to be the perfect conditions for a true Steampunk lover.
I still think about Tik Tok. Dorothy's metallic (but living) companion in "Return to Oz" (1985), who can think, speak and fight despite his clumsy and rather slow moving stature. (Believe it or not - Ironically, I even started to like mustaches a bit more, just because of this purely artificial movie character, although I never did before.) When Dorothy discovers him in a hidden corner of a dead city, Tik Tok has been "sleeping", covered with dust for an unknown period of time. She first has to wind him up like a clockwork. I also very like this clockwork-like nature of him. An artificial soldier, skilled and loyal, but always dependent on someone who "resets" him. Of course it's a very simple analogy, nevertheless very effective in my opinion. Tik Tok often appears like a statue or metallic sculpture, resurrected by Dorothy. The sculptural variation of Steampunk culture is very, very popular. Specifically objects, weapons and installments, made by people who adore Steampunk and the playful possibilities of it, are wide spread on the internet and in exhibitions. Personally, I prefer the images and movies, referred to the Steampunk universe, but the sculptural aspect is undeniable and essential too.
I'm gonna show you some examples of Steampunk objects, some of them already quiet famous, not only among the Steampunk lovers:
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| Pierre Matter - "Diane le buste" (2008) |
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| Bob Basset - "Steampunk Gas Mask No.9" (2008) |
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| Eric Freitas - "Mechanical No.5" (2008) |
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| Greg Broadmore / Doctor Grordbort - "Righteous Bison" (2010) |
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| Stéphane Halleux - "My little robot" (2010) |
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| Greg Brotherton - "The Calculator" (2011) |
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| Greg Brotherton - "Pushed around" (2009) |
I studied Scenographical Design, which is actually a special branch of the Industrial Design section. That may be the reason why I'm basically more interested in the spatial aspect of Steampunk - landscapes (which will be the next part of this post series) and sculptural creations within Steampunk spaces. The objects which I showed you above are fascinating as well, like parts of this gigantic Steampunk universe. It's the space (including all the details objects, drawn or handmade) of Steampunk that interests me so much.
As I said, for my next Steampunk chapter, we will enter the bigger scaled dimensions of this complex, 19th century-future tech-based fantasy: Spaces, rooms, entire worlds of Steampunk, including gamers' territories ...
See you there !
As I said, for my next Steampunk chapter, we will enter the bigger scaled dimensions of this complex, 19th century-future tech-based fantasy: Spaces, rooms, entire worlds of Steampunk, including gamers' territories ...
See you there !
All copyright for the images:
Greg Brotherton (http://www.brotron.com/)
Eric Freitas (http://ericfreitas.com/blog/)
Greg Broadmore / Doctor Grordbort (drgrordborts.com)
Stéphane Halleux (http://www.stephanehalleux.com/)
Pierre Matter (http://pierrematter.com/)
Bob Basset (http://bobbasset.com/)
