What is Steampunk? Fiction to Subculture | Explained for the Curious
HTML-код
- Опубликовано: 7 фев 2025
- Steampunks answer this question all the time. Steampunk is a fiction genre and a subculture with its own fashion, music, and philosophy! Welcome to Steampunk 101. This video covers the history from literary origins as a science fiction offshoot to the growth of an online subculture that wanted a different relationship with technology and history.
This video was largeley inspired by this article, if you’d like to do a bit more reading:
www.historians...
Learn more about some things shown in the video:
Subculture:
Neverwas Haul:
www.obtainiumw...
Lady Amaranth:
ladyamaranth.com/
Abney Park:
abneypark.com/
Chronicles of Hariet:
chroniclesofha...
Moniquill:
/ moniquill
Makeup Siren:
makeupsiren.de...
Ay-Leen the Peacemaker:
beyondvictoria...
MA Festivals:
Jewelry City:
jewelrycityste...
Watch City:
www.watchcityf...
Subscribe for more curious videos about game design and immersive entertainment:
curio.click/subscribe
Find us on Social Media:
curiousxp
curious.xp
Find out more about what we do:
www.curiousxp.com
Personally, my reason for loving steampunk are the outfits, props and most importantly, airships.
I like boats, especially those with steamengines, waterwheels and anything that makes it look like it's made to fly.
And steampunk is for me something, that gives me that.
Why do you think that Airplanes aren't called Airships, wouldn't that term technically be more accurate?
@@gatheringleaves While I am not sure of the english names reasoning, the Finnish name for them is "lentokone" which literally means flying machine.
Bro same right now I’m trying to make a suit I might die because my eyes are open trying to make the props help me 😂 lol
I love lighter than air craft. Especially a Zepplin.
Weird mufks
As people that love vintage fashion say, “we love the fashion, the style, and not the mindset of the time.”
Nice video *:D*
I love steampunk because it is reminiscent of the mindset of these great times, people had the right ideas and the future was promising. A positive mindset, way different than the decadent times we live now.
You guys are awesome 😭still kinda LOST but you guys are pretty freaking cool
Fashion and Mindset are very much entwined. But Steampunk does not really look like anything from back then. Because it freed itself from the mindset. Or tries to.
does anyone think it's acceptable to dress steam punk to a formal/semi-formal setting? I've got a wedding to go to in October
@X To Skip thank you
I've found myself being a steampunk person even before knowing the word, now I love the entire aesthetic and philosophy and you gave the perfect description of It, absolutely brilliant!!!
Om gosh yes same same!
Ya and testlapunk
Sameeeee sameee
Only just found out the word for this aesthetic
@@stain1095
Wait, what? Is that really a thing, teslapunk?
@@depthbrewedrollers.8793
Yap newly found out like atompunk
the ending is SO important. with any aesthetic, it’s so crucial that the initial (usually historical) roots are acknowledged for what they were. but it shouldn’t keep us from loving and indulging in the art, fashion, and/or lifestyle. we need to be aware and then transform it into something better. take what we enjoy about it and use it to inspire good in the areas it once was incapable of doing.
amazing video!!!
I think the "Steampunk" aesthetic pre-existed the genre (as described) by at least twenty years. Lovers of gauges, dials and pipes were using them whimsically in an artful way perhaps even before the literature caught on to the notion that people were transfixed by technology that they did not necessarily understand - and the more complicated the better. I can recall examples in the late 60's.
My therapist recommended me to follow my writing dream and I always imagined the world of steam punk and I’m currently doing research into it and This video was greatly greatly helpful thank you my friend and live a good life.
Me too! Good luck with your writing!
Steampunk is very overshadowed by other subcultures. It's awesome to see a new informative video introducing it to fresh eyes again!
Excellent! you've covered what I'm alway trying to explain to the public, that Steampunk is not merely Victorian re-enactment with a science fiction twist, It's more of the individual Steampunks vision of some point in an alternate future based on technology of the latter half of the 19th century. The point being that throughout human history (save for noted exceptions) technology advanced at a slow enough rate that humanity could expect the next generation would live as they lived, not foreseeing a big difference in the way the world was. In the 19th century however innovation an invention began to snowball and the civilized world had to reckon with the knowledge that life would be very different possibly within their own lifetime. Each one of us who takes that realization to heart becomes creator of a potential future based on a Victorian dream of possibility.
Well said! Social progress is a blindspot for many prognosticators, but tech brings upheaval and topples power structures every time.
Mind blown! From now this is how I'll be describing steampunk to everyone.
@@curiousxp4441 what the name of the mask with glasses I such a beautiful design and patterns 5:24
@@younghannibal7434 That's me wearing a leather mask I made myself (embelishments added by my partner)
@@DaudAlzayer that a fly ass mask my friend. Keep it up.I really don't kno nothing about steampunk but I love the movement.. much love. Great detail on the mask
I didn’t think I would watch the whole video, good video mate!
That's the best compliment a RUclipsr could get!
Agreed, this was a great video!
Me too lol
Same
I could not stop watching
The newest library in Florida, The Homestead Cybrarium, will open next month with a dedicated Steampunk Lounge and I am going to do the virtual programming until we can meet again in groups. I am so excited to introduce the community to this subculture phenomenon which inspires the space!
Wow, nice! Good luck
Wow, could you put up a link or sth., so I can check it out?
My hometown! Good for Homestead ❤
My simple question would be: Why? Does the library have some huge collection of steampunk genre material? There's nothing special about it to me. It's more about video games than literature, no matter how much I see people trying to appropriate HG Wells that has nothing to do with it.
@@ws8080 I mean, does 10,000 Leagues Under the Sea count?
What I like about steampunk machines is the fact of the mechanical aspect to it futuristic designs look slick and smooth while steampunk aesthetics look rough and mechanical like you can see the gears and cogs
I've just spoken to lots of Steampunk individuals in Newark this weekend, I'm a local musician and loved the entire spectacle.
Please come again, it made my bank holiday, all I chatted with explained the aesthetics and underpinning ideas, loved it.
Very interesting! I’ve been curious about steampunk for a while - the style, the technology, the rich imagination. You’ve explained it very well.
I guess I've always liked steampunk and maybe cyberpunk but never knew what they're called. I've always described the aesthetic as "Victorian, or maybe gothic, or maybe a little bit of Edwardian and it has a lot of machines and colors in it" lol. I just like how imaginative it is and like you said, we can create anything we want in the steampunk world because it's not historical to begin with. I may not be brave enough to dress in this aesthetic (and honestly I'm okay with that fact), but I like making miniatures and simple mechanics and build something in this aesthetic.
I don’t know why but I’ve always found girls dressed up in full steampunk garb to be so beautiful looking.
I’m not in to steampunk but this honestly was much better than many low sub yt channels. Keep it up man!
My curiosity has been lifted and I now get this sub-culture. Well put together sir
This is by far the best "What is steampunk" video ever.
THIS IS HOW YOU DO A WHAT IS XY VIDEO!
Well done, mate.
Steampunk: Victorian Romanticism meets Mad Scientist! I’ve been in love with steampunk since before it had a name. Ever since I watch The Time Machine (the original)!
Best description and illustration of steampunk I've yet seen. And all in nine and a half minutes!
One of the last community theatre productions that I took part in introduced me to two new things. We were putting on the G & S musical "Ruddigore". The costumer wanted to fashion the wardrobe based on steam punk. So, those of us who had never heard of it had to be brought up to speed. The choreographer offered the tenants of the paleo diet to the women in the chorus who wanted to lose weight. So, I took a handout just to learn what it was all about.
I am slowly becoming more and more steampunk, and the aesthetic is awesome. I work at a used furniture store so I have been regularly replacing the newer pieces in my house with victorian era ones. Walking into my library I have a set of beautiful semi rusted gates, 2 antique lamps, and the whole room screams of another time. I even have a variety of plants in there that the victorians would have loved. Its lovely to have things that are made and fixed and to find new creative ways to use them, like the extremely rickety blanket rack that I am using wood from an old mill (that was being torn out) to make into a table. For me its more than just the style, I see the sustainability and the reuseability of the items. The trash to treasure aspect is very much in the steampunk culture as is salvaging things and fixing things. I love it
I do love steampunk, it's such a beautiful genre. I don't agree with the mindset of the time it was based off of with racism, sexism and other nasty things of that era but with this fantasy genre we can imagine a world where EVERYONE is welcome as long as they do no harm :)
Amen. Wokeism is obsessed with infesting everything with its own agenda.
Yeah, dude!
No white people allowed. They are the antithesis of Steam-punk.
You were doing so well till you couldn't stop yourself parroting the received woke "isms"...
The mindsets (not mindset) of the time are profoundly more complicated than racism and sexism. Humans are complex, past and present societies are multi-faceted.
Im glad i´ve found your video, very informative and clear. I discovered steampunk in 2013 and I started a journey of sharing it´s existance to the people through my art. 10 years have passed and it´s still giving me the fuel to continue this task. May the power of steam clear your path comrade.
I’m a curious mix of steampunk and dieselpunk… I love history (can’t know where you’re going if you don’t know where you been)… and I love the mix of historical fact and fiction this brings…
I wish some credit for the popularity of steampunk would be given to Final Fantasy. Several of the titles in the series, particularly FF6 and FF9, beautifully incorporated steampunk into their design. And they did it long before the genre really made its way into popular culture.
Love the simple yet detailed explanation of Steampunk. You have made us Steampunk fans and members proud.
Love steampunk. As an engineering student.. am gonna build my own steampunk airship one day. !
Steampunk so deserves a game.
Say, Steampunk 1877?
Maybe the Triangular Smallsword will make an appearance. It finishes the whole ensemble.
If you find yourself wanting to be able to repair your devices, you should stand with Louis Rossmann. Dude has been fighting for Right To Repair bills for years.
It's the first step in getting things worth having.
Second step: Availability of phones that have an easily unlockable bootloader and standardized CPU platform to be able to put a Linux distro on it, such as Ubuntu for Phone.
Love these minority shoutouts/links to explore... I’m currently on a steampunk kick and missing the times of asylum steampunk festival before the plague, and this is bringing much joy
There is a group of Steampunk artists here in the Philippines! Cheers!
Thanks so much for this video! My son wants to go to the steampunk weekend at the local renaissance faire, and my son and I were having a difficult time explaining to my mom what steampunk actually is. This video gives a beautiful, succinct overview, that doesn't try to overcomplicate things. :)
As Anita Sarkisian (my apologies if that's wrong) once said:
"[...] but remember that it's possible, and even necessary, to simultaneously enjoy media whilst also being critical of it's negative and pernicious aspects."
There is a casino in Beatty, Nevada called The Exchange Club that is now being completely remodeled into a steampunk theme! The casino has been around forever, but has been closed for the last several years. It should be opening again sometime soon! ⚙
Steampunk is really an exciting aesthetic and philosophy. Great video.
The reason I love steampunk so much is because it’s the perfect blend between medieval fantasy and the modern age. During the time of this aesthetic, people were still using swords and horses in war, yet also rifles and bombing aircraft. People were still living in the mindset of chivalry in warfare and things like music and culture were thriving.
I also like the particular style of fashion in this time. It feels simple yet very decorative, almost like a modern version of fantasy.
your insight about the problematic origins of the steampunk subgenre and how inclusivity can enlarge and enrich the experience fully convinced me to subscribe. Well done!
Imagine me listening to this, researching a Steampunk dnd campaign, and hearing the literal town in which i live mentioned
This is my first stumble into actively looking for an introduction about steampunk that has been captruing my attention over a sometime as an artist. Thank you for the great exposition. Yes steampunk is full of character, immagination, art innovation, romanticism and nostalgia and machines that we can fall in love with that almost feel alive rather than the soulless inscrutable tasteless slabs that we have!! Thank you for pointing this out.
I was just today wondering what steampunk is, and here you are with all the answers. Well done.
Garnet Evergreen, steampunk from New Zealand, here. Loved the video thanks.
Hello from New Zealand. This is the best description I've heard yet. Well done and many thank yous for a splendid job.
I abseloutly love everything about steampunk and i really want to create something in my own steampunk world, wether that will be a comic, a book or a game i don’t know yet but i have the general idea
I personally love Steampunk because it brings history back to life in different ways I couldn’t even imagine thinking of in the 1st place, I’m curious and wanna hang on to the ride to see more!!!
In steampunk what draws me in is that you can see the gears turning. Sure a sci-fi flying machine is cool, but a device that you wind up, it turns some gears, makes some click-clack sounds, expels a bit of gas and then lifts off buzzing and shaking, now that's just absolutely charming to witness
You can thank that new show Arcane for bringing me here. I just love the aesthetic of the undercity and the technology there. It know it probably doesn't count as steampunk and is a bit more closer to sci-fi or just fantasy, but still it has that click-clack feeling to it.
gotta love steampunk...where total strangers are splendid to one another ! Greetings from UK
Honestly, Warhammer Fantasy Dwarves got me interested in Steampunk. Moving parts, cogs, gears, steam power, things of that nature, but with a Viking and Celtic theme splashed into there. And a subtle hint of Gothic. I just love it all when it comes to that.
I started listening to steampunk through a band called “The Cog is Dead “
Loved the video, I loved the concept of steampunk for years but never really knew where it originated. I'm getting the itch to build a few steampunk edison lamps and maybe some steampunk shelves. Great video!
Man This Channel Is Very Very Underrated
The Video Is Amazingly Good
I Will Watch Your Career With Great Interest
Fantastic video, I've been drawn to this for years and I'm planning on taking a much deeper dive into it.
I LOVE LOVE LOVE seeing all kinds of cultural representations of the Steampunk genre
Wonderful video and explanation of the term Steampunk. I’m always looking at vintage items on eBay that are often described as steampunk. I confess that it’s meaning has been elusive until watching this entertaining video. My interest in vintage items converges with steampunk aesthetic. Thank you for the enrichment, my place in the world feels a little bit more complete.
Enjoying this content! I find Myself more and more intrigued about this culture. Subscribed!
Ever wonder how many awesome inventions were never made or medical breakthroughs left undefeated because of hatred in the form of racial bigotry?
So true! When we exclude categories of people we are poorer for it.
No because history shows that many people of color and people outside the "norms"of society distinguished themselves and experienced success despite the ignorance and bigotry that existed, and they did so in sports, entertainment, science, invention, agricultural innovation, and in business. Furthermore you would have known that had you read any actual history books, visited any actual museums and historical sites rather than capitulating to leftist BLM communist propaganda and repeating it.
Sick and tired of wokes banging on about racism at every opportunity, racism racism blah blah blah , change the record and get a life !
@@billcook7483 lol
@@billcook7483 ok racist
This video's very well explained and definitely helps paint a picture. Personally my favorite parts of steampunk are the punk aspects. Dissecting the structure of the society of someone's steampunk world is so fascinating to me. That and the complex machinery of course haha.
I'm writing a book that is in the style of Steampunk and Magipunk, so this was a great video!
Good luck!
I was a steampunk person from basically age 0. I’ve always absolutely LOVED everything related to steam and old stuff, also steam locomotives are the things I love
Really excellent video. I hope this gets lots of views!
Wow absolutely loved your video. I genuinely learned aspects of steampunk I never even thought of!
I saw photos of steampunks (without knowing what they were) at an American con, back in the early 2000s, and wished that we had that here (UK). I had no idea that Weekend at the Asylum had been happening here, in Lincoln, until a couple we met at the Jane Austen Festival in Bath said they lived in Lincoln too. It was from them that we learned all about steampunk, and we have been steampunks since about 2011/12.
Its a loving place to spend time. I'm working on a Magipunk area of my DnD world that developed all on its own away from the rest of the world. This video helped me with loads of great ideas to help it feel layered. Thank you!
when goth learn about the color brown
I got into Steampunk some years ago and haven't of late done much in it due to initial building of my Off Grid Lifestyle...I wore my version of Steampunk for Halloween and I find it quite energizeing and comfortable...this time I wore a Top Hat...loads of fun and the Fantasy of it truely does inspire works of art as well as functional inventions reflecting the true Spirit of Steampunk...Wood, Brass, and Textiles Blended together to produce not only a Subgenre, but Truely a Strong Subculture throughout the world...I'm 65 and enjoy this world...it makes what we perceive to be reality a bit more bearable...lol...
thank you for this, its the best and most balanced explanation to date of our wonderful sub-culture, big love from the UK
I only discovered the name "steampunk" yesterday, when I visited an art store and picked up a book called "How To Draw Steampunk". I looked at the cover and the illustrations inside and remembered where I'd seen ones similar to them before: in Heavy Metal Magazine. And then I realised that the short-lived HBO series, "The Nevers" was also heavily influenced by Steampunk imagery and themes, as it was set in the Victorian age and there was a lot of technology displayed in the scenes. My curiosity has been piqued, so I think I'll be returning to that store and picking up that instructional book and doing some research. Greetings from Trinidad and Tobago.
Your delivery is captivating.
I'm not into Steampunk, but much enjoyed watching your video.
Steampunk feels like the epitome of “we must remember the past or we are doomed to repeat it” with futuristic philosophy- recognizing how we’re going down a bad path and wishing for a better humanity. I’ve heard that steampunk is optimistic, and I like the idea that it inspires people to find their comfort in the old and not the new, because the new actively harms us. Steampunks, like all punks, seem to be very caring people, and I hope that kind philosophy can draw more people into the culture.
Very well done! TY, I have often wondered about this subject...
I've also been very dismissive of it in general in the past, but I can see the appeal of it now having had it better explained...
I was looking for a great way to explain steampunk to my students and this was perfect. Thank you!
A very well explained precis of Steampunk. Well done - ! 😊
I'm not a Steampunk, but I do like the reverse techno features in photos & videos.
“Embrace the best, address the rest!” I feel like steampunk actually offers a lens through which to look back on history with a more critical eye, but also at our present and future - appreciating the past, on what is maybe at first quite an aesthetic level but which inevitably goes deeper (at least for a mind like mine), helps us to recognise when things _were_ actually better, as well as criticise their mistakes and study the circumstances by which atrocities come to pass so we can recognise similar trajectories earlier and do better. Dressing in pompous and preposterous fancy is both a means to feel special and beautiful, whilst also satirising the classism inherent to the lives and times of those who actually wore things like it. I’m also an engineer at heart, and the exquisite precision of delicate gears and technology much more obviously grounded in the physical world and whose workings aren’t just visible but a work of art in their own, for any onlooker to study or learn or take inspiration from - it’s marvellous. Being able to appreciate the hands-on effort, ingenuity and dedication that goes into creating such a machine gives it something very human. I couldn’t learn anything at school unless I understood both why it was necessary to know and why it functions the way it does. Steampunk is a veritable exhibition of function, with form to spare. I am tired of the inscrutable! I desire to scrute!!!
I love the craftsmanship, artistry and creativity of steampunk. Uniqueness making the useful art.
Eco-Industrial Steampunk is my favorite. I also like Piratepunk.
I’ve been fascinated by the beauty of steampunk.
I hope historians can leverage this movement to show both the miracles and misery caused by the Victorian era.
Exploitation seems to be present in all facets of life on earth.
I have been repairing watches , chronometers, chronographs and aircraft instruments for the US government and on my own now for 70 years +. I also entered electronics at a time when we had vacuum tubes. I repair very old radios. I get a strong Steampunk vibe from all of that. I love seeing people’s creativity.
Great video. Very well explained. As a kid I would spend hours looking at the art work for Jeff Wayne's musical version of War of the World and it was only years later did I realise it was Steampunk. Also 20,000 Leagues and other Jules Verne inspired films. Good stuff. Steampunk is a deep rabbit hole....Also, let's not forget Rush's last album Clockwork Angels is Steampunk inspired. Rip Neil Peart.
I've always been into Punk. My 17 year old introduced me to SteamPunk. Now I can't get enough! Love love love everything about it! Steampunk has also brought me to Similar Folk bands. Lucy by This Way to the Egress is very close to AliceBand's "home" and other songs, though the latter isn't quite labeled "Steampunk". Love it all! More please!
What an interesting presentation. Thank you for your well thought out discussion.
It's so strange that my love and passion in mechanical gadgets produced both for aesthetics and functionality has a genre name. I regret having learned about it at the age of 50. (48, to be honest)
I’m a woman , much older , love SteamPunk aswell , industrial, that would a interesting mix, to decor my home, and sewing the cloths, and craft the material.
Out of curiosity, I read a steam punk novel...and loved it. The storie was based in my state, and was mesmerizing.
hi, i am a failed writer doing some research for a project. i kind of decided to make a classic story into steam punk and had no idea where to start. thank you for the video it helped a lot!
Hello - I'm a Steampunk from the UK!
I love gears, clockwork designs, and the subdued colors that are often found in steampunk. I have an outfit that I am making for regular use.
That picture at 8:06 is extremely interesting and says something about why I personally like Steampunk, it's as if that might be how poor rural English folk felt moving into the city and working in the factories for the first time, we know due to our broader scope of history that stuff like that didn't exists, but to the lower classes or rural people back then seeing something like that would be akin to seeing a train, or a car, or a factory machine for the first time, who knows what else the rich are having them cook up. So it's also almost an exclusive society feel to as well. I first heard of Steampunk when looking at images of Steampunk versions of Spider-Man, and then found versions of many other heroes. It's an interesting connect because Super-Heroes by themselves posses a lot of the same secret society and exclusive aestitics due to the Secret Identities and Super-hero society tropes, so I like how nicely they line up. There's a really nice scene from the Anime Demon Slayer that happens in the last episode of Season 1. The protagonist and his allies encounter a train for the first time and the protagonist and one of his allies mistake it for a spirit of some kind, while the other just looks at them in shook that they have no idea what a train is. I feel that is what recently regrew my interest in Steampunk and how it interacts with traditional fantasy ie. The Dwemer from The Elder Scrolls, and Eastern Fantasy ie. The Naruto Movies and how they hint at outside industrialization.
I love steampunk as an artist I did a 3-D abstract on canvas! I went crazy looking for gears in my house making goggles out of the Keurig coffee pouches! ✌🏼
"The Elephant Man" 1980 - Total Steampunk. Lots of Steam anyway.
While not really new to me, my interest peaks a bit more everytime i run into "it" as I'm out and about. Recently I have been internet-ing various steam-y goodies, and who should I run across? Why this guy of course. And he/you has provided a very interesting primer on the steam-ier side of life. Very well done! Informative and also visually intertaining. "With a capital MY to whom it may", as another once said.
"It's counter culture" - really? Everyone deliberately dressing a certain way is cultural conformity
Like another comment said; this is basically when a goth discovers the color brown and a more science-ey aesthetic.
Same pretentiously narcissistic, vacuous, self-hating person, different outfit.
In an age of deconstructing the past in order to distract from our own inadequacies, steampunk chooses to celebrate a particular era for what was good rather then harp on the failures that still plague the hearts of us all.
I am so glad I decided to watch this video the whole way through. It was well thought out and balanced. Thank you for this.
Thanks! I'm thinking of writing a book about Steampunk so this is going to help me so much!
Thanks for explaining! I was so confused when my friend started talking about it XD
Glad I could help 😁
Very well presented....I have never heard of steampunk until a flea market we like to go to is having a steampunk show this coming weekend, so the wife and I said "Why not go"....we are both 60 years old and curious to this, so I decided to look it up. Now I really want to go after watching this video.
Did you go? If so, how was it?
That voice is very soothing and alluring! Brilliant video, old bean!
Ive loved steampunk every since i first saw Treasure Planet and Atlantis! Anything and everything steampunk just absolutely fascinates me to my core. The vibe..the feel, the aesthetic. Its all so beautiful. I began developing and writing my own steampunk novel called "Shattered Parellels" and csnt frickin wait to publish it
My opinion of Steampunk's draw is not a wish for the past, but a desire to have the same level of technology coupled with a personality. Every piece of Steampunk "Tech" that I've seen at SciFi conventions is uniquely individual, and so were the costumes worn. I believe that it's a desire for Individuality amongst impersonal technology.
the Steampunkers that I've met all love the idea of mods in games, and in life. The desire to be 'different', while not having to sacrifice what draws the current generation together (and i's not just one generation, either). I love the outlook, and i wish everyone had that much desire to accomplish more things.
Just found this video, thank you so much! Excellent ❤ and now I can explain myself so much better to my friends, and those around me! Bravo!
Was introduced to Steampunk when I read 'The Difference Engine' 👍😎🎩
You're underrated.