Why I Loathe (and Adore) Steampunk

[colmunson]

I don't really update my site, "Odd Mix" much. Been too busy with other stuff. But anyway, this rant will be there. Read it here now if you care to. Some of you will recognize parts of it from recent posts.

As my voracious readers will recall, I recently ran into this blog entry: ( Read more... )

Comments

[colmunson]

I love that icon. My wife just read that new novel - the Adventures of Lord Darcey, Gentleman" or whatever it was called. Seems it is good stuff if you're a fan.

These are all excellent point.

Thank you.

mostly because of two ends of the spectrum: the self-referencing fashion end that is neither creative nor interesting, and the equally as boring attitude of people who tout it as a "lifestyle" or "subculture" and decry others for experimenting with it on a less permanent basis. I don't really feel steampunk qualifies as a subculture I think attempts to qualify it as such border on the ridiculous. Neat literary and film genre? Yes. Fascinating, disturbing and thought-provoking ideas and concepts? Yes. Neat fashion when not done atrociously? Yes. As cohesive as a subculture? No.

I agree. Creatives must always be allowed to experiment with things. The essence of creativity is to combine two previously unlinked things, as they taught me in school. You need material. Wisdom comes with knowing when to let go and forge a new path.

So anyway, I used to have no problem with the fashion when done as art experiment, but the originality has largely gone out of that (present company exempted).

What? You're not an Abney Park fan?
Some folks would certainly have it be a complete subculture and realtime scene, but I agree it wouldn't work. SP is perhaps best relegated to being a genre of LARP or something. This is why it is a fringe in the goth club scene. But at least the popularity is helping more classic Victorian goth to come back to the fore. I suspect as many steam fans calm down, they will go more generally for Victorian styles.

I guess I'm also very bored by the pretentious efforts I've seen floating around to qualify something as "steampunk or not".

Even though I am an advocate of classic good taste, I agree. ANY "...or Not." is annoying and merely a lamp for snobbish flies to buzz around. I have been sick of those things for years - starting with the SCA version. Snobbery is poor taste! This is why I attack SP as a fad, not the individuals who are following it. There are lots of good folks who like to wear funky duds and read good fantasy.

While I understand that steampunk was far from a new thing in comic and gaming circles, it was fresh to me and I rarely saw aesthetic depictions. The beauty of something that had so much richness to it conceptually but very little visual interpretation sparked my imagination as a seamstress. I think you saw some of my early efforts with that...?

Oh, of course I remember fondly. And I felt the same way about it all. I still love SP. I just don't groove on it being quite as thick with followers as it is now. Too many people aping the look (and nothing else about it) have rather killed it for me.

Yes, yes and yes.

Thank you! Indeed, that's my take on it generally. Heck, that's my take on most things, including club gear. But then, I grew up getting my ooky gear from thrift stores and military surplus; pre-Lip Service n all that. ;)

PS - Hope you're feeling better.

[colmunson]

Abney Park doesn't qualify as a whole genre of steampunk music, hehe. ;)

Yeah. I _want_ to like them and also Vernian Process, but the musicality just isn't there for me. Great look for the act though. Now Rasputina could wear whatever they like and I'd still love their music. *swoon* indeed.

There's an important difference between loving the idea of something and the actualization of it, don't you agree?

Oh heck yeah. But I can't fault artists for trying. Well...I can, but I shouldn't. ;)

formulaic aesthetic...you get the picture.

Yeah. Same human behaviors, different dress-up. As mom used to say, "Life's too short to dance with ugly women."

I'm not the sort of person who dislikes something simply because it's grown in popularity, but rather, without flattering myself too much, by the time it's become very very popular I'm usually looking to the next thing.

I'd like to say me too, but to an extent I do tend to like things a lot less after they become popular, because they change. That said, once something goes mainstream, at least you can get more of it, assuming you don't mind diminished quality. I guess the key is to find things you love and just enjoy the heck out of them. Theoretically, the more classic or noble the foundations of something is, the less likely it is that popularity, or the lack there of, will change its essential nature. Like...classic tailoring - it will always be good and stand the test of time. Nobody with a mic and latex trousers today will ever be deemed as Goth as Poe in 100 years! I should write something about fashion vs. style.

I'm considering doing one more, but it's because I'm excited about the idea of it, this photographer wants to do a kind of "storyline", many frames presented together to show progression. He's also interested in involving some older models as well as younger ones to add depth, which is a very welcome viewpoint.

Now that sounds interesting! Go for it. Concept. Concept. Concept.

I'm considering creating a third filter solely for fashion & finished creations

*grin* Can I be on a filter that discusses the creative influences and final products but skips the "this is a 1/2" stitch in double French looping" stuff in the middle? Nah, seriously, I may not comment, but I like hearing about your work.

Thanks for the link, though I can't say if it is of any use to me just now. I wish I had schedule reasons to own a good tux!

[colmunson]

*sigh* I would love to attend this....even though I stole that promo photo for my article. I can't help it, they look goofy and overwrought to me - especially the "gentleman". I think the lady was the real model and they made him up super-fast with odds and ends. :)