In this second part of our file on the world steampunk , we are not going to focus on the literary origins of the genre, but on what has become: a universe Speeding deployed in a multitude of media and especially in the creativity of his fans!
In the previous part that you can always discover by clicking by here , we have specified that steampunk is a mixed genus of popular cultures from the end of the 19th century and the realities of historical From the time, between an aesthetic retro-futuristic imagination and above all a game filled with references where everyone can bring their cultural background. This is all that makes the richness of this kind.
The time when it is anchored was a real founding era from the historical point of view but also from the point of view of popular fictions. His birth responds perfectly to the contemporary period where we play more
in addition with what the public knows of fiction and his codes, and therefore where the
textual beta discourse met with great success. < /p>
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The 80s who saw the birth of steampunk are therefore a period when we try to re-enchant the world; No longer by utopias but by recycling the future as the previous generations have dreamed of. This is what some call "post-modernity", a concept that is still questionable.
It must therefore be said that direct jump from 1880 to 1980 and the specifics of each of these moments made the genesis of this kind.
All this makes steampunk a completely exciting object rich in analysis, especially from the point of view of the multiple transformations and appropriations that he has undergone since his origins and the way in which is become for some a culture and a real way of life.
It is a question of playing with the past and therefore to be registered in culture and
creative re-use, re-agency; Who is central today
popular culture, especially when coupled with the Internet and digital tools that allow you to cut everything, mix, de-contextualize.
We can for example think of individuals who replay scenes from Star-Wars on YouTube, who write fan-fictions Harry Potter or who cost up during conventions.
These fictional universes provide a frame, a space, in short a sandbox which
the most basic definition of the game and what the playful attitude allows.
This is this link Between I passion fiction imaginary worlds as a framework of the expression of the individual and collective identity which pushes to participate.
participate is to take part in what is happening, therefore to be part of a collective. But it is also appropriate the objects and therefore take a part of it to build your own individuality and it can take extremely numerous forms.
In the case of steampunk , participatory activities abound in particular. This genre has taken off all its boom and dimension through plastic and visual arts, even more than fan-fictions another sagas.
The steampunk cannot be read: it is lived, it is embodied in the bodies, in a way of life, in a will of permanent creativity, in a desire to break the codes our codes daily life.
A good example is typically the festival Burning Man which takes place
Each year in the USA. During a whole week, thousands of participants live in Autarcia in the middle of the desert. This is the perfect opportunity to give life to the wildest, especially artistic projects, with tanks, giant sculptures, parades, exhibitions and costumes more incredible from each other.
It is also quite fun to see how inspired the visual codes of the festival were inspired by Mad Max, notably with the famous Thunderdome that we find in Burning Man and in Mad Max 2, before becoming himself- Even a source
Inspiration for Mad Max released in 2015.
This festival is well imbued with retro futurism and steampunk . In culture
steampunk, costumes are Always supplemented with various accessories such as Gousset watch Copper and money, tunnel and aviation glasses-the famous "googles"-and other jet-packs that pay tribute to cannons, such as rocketeer by Joe Johnston , a little little -known Disney pearl which unfortunately made a huge void at the time, like all the films steampunk.
The body is always present in the Steampunk imagination. It is performed by its fans with games on the extension of the body or on the scrambling, for example, of gender borders.
The cosplays that are most often found in illustration catalogs or on amateur sites are customized objects: electric
guitar, book, glasses ... all fan of steampunk Like old books on the cover of connected leather, but also of computers, jewelry, cars, game console?
These images of transformed objects or created by amateurs make the pleasure of
Sharing sites Image, in particular Tumblr, Facebook and even more the Pinterest social network (the principle of which is to pin images on a digital wall compared to a theme) which is completely suitable for this type of collections where
Everyone can exchange their most beautiful pieces.
The steampunk is part of the reign of the D.I.Y (do it yourself), that is to say in cooperation and learning that forge a sort of a kind of
very strong community feeling. Each small element, each customization
Each costume, is the subject not only of a series of images presenting the finished product with pride, but also detailed tutorials, explanatory videos,
photographs that show the intermediate steps in the creation of the object.
On the specialized forums, there are instructive conversations on how to age a leather jacket, how to transform an electrical train train into a majestic representative of the Victorian imagination, how to make a zeppelin model, how to draw a robot < > Steampunk etc ...
There is no shortage of questions either. Everyone goes from their
advice, their expertise according to their skills. This is not worth that for physical objects even if this culture is particularly present.
We can also learn for example to build your house in a steampunk style in this tray giant sand which is the game called Minecraft.
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What emerges overall from the many amateur creations such as cosplay, objects, drawings and other digital creations, is that unlike other genres, it is often not a question of taking a work already belonging to A genre for framework but the genre itself as a whole. SF fans who decide for example to make a cosplay to present in an agreement will not generally disguise themselves as a generic character of science fiction but as a character of emblematic sagas like Star Wars, Star Trek, Stargate SG-1, Battlestar Galactica, Mass-Effect etc ...
Now, in the culture steampunk , it is much more common not to do
Reference a particular work or to say that we create a character Steampunk . There can of course be an influence of Jules Verne, a little lovecraft, Tesla and a whole bunch of works a little more recent but it is above all a lot of real lovers of being inspired by a mash-up Total, with a hybrid form which is not directly influenced by a specific character or work.
There are of course exceptions, just as it can happen in the other sense to disguise as a science fiction character totally imaginary. However, the proportion of this type of creation in steampunk is enormous and to see it just go for five minutes to any agreement.
The steampunk is therefore not a genre in which occurrences or striking works should register but indeed a pure aesthetic, transposable and blurred borders. Besides, when you think steampunk , we do not think directly of a specific work but of a global decor, made of zepplins and copper submarines. There is not strictly speaking of a specific universe or a founding work, the steampunk did not have its Star Wars or its Lord of the Rings and that is what makes it difficult To explain to neophytes of the genre.
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This genre is a universe by itself and therefore without specific works. This absence of references other than the historical period on which the fictions of that time are based has made it a very particular genre and it is far
to be a handicap, because fans of the genre can even more
Easily that others move away from cases related to non -compliance with a work.
This also partly explains the participatory fever that drives these enthusiasts.