Tonight
May 17, 2012 6:30 – 9pm
May 17, 2012 6:30 – 9pm
Entry & 1 drink ticket: $8
Members: FREE
Dress in full costume and get in for $5
Afterparty at the Rathskeller in Tycoons
The Duluth Art Institute is proud to present A Night of Steampunk. This will be
an event featuring a Steampunk fashion show and other Steampunk related visual
arts. Steampunk visual art designs have no set guidelines, but tend to
synthesize modern styles influenced by science fiction, fantasy, and the
Victorian era. This is an interactive visual arts event where spectators are
encouraged to not only explore the Steampunk creations by local artists, but
also participate in “setting the scene” of this event through dress. Come to
the event in full costume and get a discounted entry for $5.00.
We thought there would be no better backdrop for this event than the Depot
Train Museum. Sponsored by Dubrue, The Historic Union Depot, with an after
party at Tycoons, this will be a night to remember!
My first conscious contact with Steampunk was at last summer’s
Friends of Industry event featuring the world premiere of Eric Horn’s Steampunk
Chronicle. Only later did I understand that I’d already seen Steampunk in various
Hollywood films, but failed to be aware of what it really was as a semi-defined
genre.
In her book Writing Steampunk, Beth Daniels is quick to point out that not everyone who enjoys reading Steampunk is interested in living Steampunk. Perhaps it’s a bit like the Trekkies who become characters and go to conventions, as opposed to the Star Trek fans who simply didn't want to miss their show each week. Tonight’s DAI-sponsored event at the Depot offers the role-players and hard-core enthusiasts to dress up without having to wait till Halloween. I mean, who amongst us didn’t look forward to becoming some other character on that last night of October?
At its most basic, Steampunk is a subset of Fantasy. Efforts
to put my arms around the genre led to some basic shared premises. The historical
period is Victorian/Edwardian, the era of Jules Verne and early H.G. Wells. But
there’s a “weird, wild west” version and East Coast Steampunk and the more people you talk with the less you’ll
have a coherent picture, except that one thing is certain, sort of. This is a
pre-computer world, a pre-twentieth century science world, pre-organic
synthesis…
Another feature of the genre is its fascination with original characters. Marvel Comics meets old-school science, the Industrial Revolution meets a future that by-passes the real directions science and technology advanced.
I’m no authority, but I have been boning up on Steampunk literature and guess what? I already have the beginnings of a story forming in one of the subterranean caverns of my unconscious. It involves a golem, a hero and maybe even a little romantic adventure. Good versus evil, redemption from a futile pursuit... and a wake-up call to save the world. But tonight I will become an Edwardian-era chemist. Join us! I fully expect it to be a night to remember.
* * *
If you like fantasy with a supernatural twist, you might
enjoy my first volume of short stories titled Unremembered Histories. They aren’t
really Steampunk since they pre-existed my encounter with the genre, but a few
of the stories will tickle your imagination in that general vicinity.
Featured eBook of the Day: Unremembered Histories
PHOTOS COURTESY ANDREW PERFETTI
Click images to enlarge.
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