Arthur Hinds talks about costuming in the “steampunk” fashion, which combines Victorian-era clothing with steam engine-inspired gadgetry.STEAMPUNK POP CULTUREThink you’ve missed out on steampunk? If you’ve watched any of these movies, think again:• “The Adventures of Baron Munchausen” (1988)• “Back to the Future Part III” (1990)• “Wild Wild West” (1999)• “Sleepy Hollow” (1999)• “The League of Extra-ordinary Gentlemen” (2003)• Howl’s Moving Castle” (2004)• “Steamboy” (2004)• “Van Helsing” (2004)• “The Brothers Grimm” (2005)• “Stardust” (2007)• “9” (2009)• “Sherlock Holmes”/ “Sherlock Holmes: Game of Shadows” (2009/2011)• “The Three Musketeers” (2011)If you’ve played any of the following video games, you have encountered steampunk:• “Final Fantasy VI” (1994)• “Wild Arms” (1997)• “Thief: The Dark Project”/ “Thief II: The Metal Age” (1998/2000)• “Arcanum: Of Steamworks and Magick Obscura” (2001)• “Dark Cloud II” (2003)• “Rise of Nations: Rise of Legends” (2003)• “Steambot Chronicles” (2005)• “Torchlight”/”Torchlight II” (2009/2012)• “Fable III” (2010)• “Dishonored” (2012)• “BioShock Infinite” (2013 — anticipated)
One of the advantages of flying a zeppelin is that no one hears you coming.
Like the inflatable airships that frequently appear in its stories, the alternate history genre of steampunk quietly has been sneaking into more and more books, video games, movies and fan conventions in recent years.
Steampunk, which offers a reimagined take on the 19th century, has been around for decades, but the genre has been showing up in unexpected places lately.
“Every time you think steampunk has gone away, it gets stronger,” said Daniel Valdez, 29, a steampunk costume artist and smart-home designer from Huntsville, Ala.