Also (sorry for the multiple comments, adding thoughts as I come to them), the DIY aesthetic is very appealing. I'm just about old enough to remember what goth was like in the mid-90s, before it was possibly to buy a corset off eBay or on the high street, and how people would buy vintage and secondhand clothes, or cheap skirts and shirts from hippy shops, and trim, tailor and dye them to create an outfit. It wasn't about having the most flamboyant outfit or the most expensive period-authentic dress, it was about creativity. And while I love playing dress-up, I'm also an inveterate bargain hunter who will get more pleasure out of a £5 charity shop jacket that I've changed the buttons on and added some lace to, than a silk brocade corset I've spent £300 on. And steampunk harks back to that - because it's a small subculture and the clothes aren't mainstream, people get creative with what they have.
The Arts & Crafts movement is definitely a big influence in terms of ethos (whatever Cory Doctorow says). "Have nothing you do not know to be useful nor believe to be beautiful," William Morris said, and that definitely comes through. Functional objects such as goggles, scientific instruments, bags and clothing made of beautiful materials, embellished and made with love and care, not mass-produced and stamped out of a mould. (There's also something pleasingly subversive about taking something that was stamped out of a mould, like a water pistol or mobile phone, and making it look old and precious). And there's a make-do-and-mend aspect to it - recycling old/obsolete things such as broken clock parts, keys or bottles into new and exciting things. A reaction to disposable culture, if you like.
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branchandroot
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Date: 2009-05-09 09:26 am (UTC)The Arts & Crafts movement is definitely a big influence in terms of ethos (whatever Cory Doctorow says). "Have nothing you do not know to be useful nor believe to be beautiful," William Morris said, and that definitely comes through. Functional objects such as goggles, scientific instruments, bags and clothing made of beautiful materials, embellished and made with love and care, not mass-produced and stamped out of a mould. (There's also something pleasingly subversive about taking something that was stamped out of a mould, like a water pistol or mobile phone, and making it look old and precious). And there's a make-do-and-mend aspect to it - recycling old/obsolete things such as broken clock parts, keys or bottles into new and exciting things. A reaction to disposable culture, if you like.