Steampunk Japan

[Never mind the Cogs]

Just spotted this,......

                     

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6L_laiaTvcg

                  Steampunk Japan

[J. Wilhelm]

Just spotted this,......

                     

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6L_laiaTvcg

                  Steampunk Japan

We have our own Japanese Steampunk thread. Generally I "maintain" the thread.  Look at this:

http://brassgoggles.co.uk/forum/index.php/topic,38619.0.html

Our contacts in Japan are Strange Artefact, a Steampunk pop music duo, who once in a blue moon drop by in the forum, and also come to the States once in a while. The movement started a few (3?) years ago, thanks to Tokio Inventors Society, which whom I maintain vary tenuous connections through Twitter and Facebook.

[Hez]

Just spotted this,......

                     

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6L_laiaTvcg

                  Steampunk Japan

Same era different culture.  I like it.

[GCCC]

Love the video; it has a poetry to it. While covering the same themes, it is different in feel to similar Western offerings.

(Caveat:  I've not seen that many "similar" videos, but what I have seems more "loud" (clanky and boisterous), rather than the beauty and elegance on display in this video.)

[Melrose]

I'm very late to this thread, but that video impressed me! Distinctively Japanese but still very steampunk - which shows how flexible steam is. A bit of Wells, a bit of Miyazaki!

[J. Wilhelm]

I'm very late to this thread, but that video impressed me! Distinctively Japanese but still very steampunk - which shows how flexible steam is. A bit of Wells, a bit of Miyazaki!

I strongly suggest visiting the other Japanese Steampunk thread (linked above). The only caveat is, that communication has been severed a bit. It was always a bit hard to get the Japanese folks to participate in this forum, and I did not feel a real "connection." Not to say that I felt we were "shunned" or anything like that, but I did feel a bit of a cold shoulder. 

Their productions/events, are immense actually. They have an annual Steam Graden plus several other events during the year which include performance arts . You see, the Steampunk movement in Japan got started in the Tokyo nightclub scene and  became supported by the craft art markets and DIY movement. They have benefited greatly from the Audio/Video production venues in Japan plus the very lively night life in the sophisticated Tokyo nighclubs, which have catapulted the movement into a very strong underground scene, which is much more closely related to the Goth and darker-themed crowds, and away from the bubble-gum Japanese pop culture on the surface.

For your reference, for a while I was acting as Brassgoggles' ambassador to Steampunk Mexico and the Tokyo Inventor's Society. The first one in Mexico, I was involved in from its inception, since I was raised in that country and I stumbled on the first Mexican movement which back then was brand new, becoming a member there. The Japanese forum, on the other hand, started one year later, and I fail to remember what led me to them, probably my meagre dealings on Twitter with the Japanese band Strange Artifact when I was promoting my Steampunk business in Japanese. I also became a member of one Spanish Steampunk group and initiated contacts over Facebook with Steampunk groups in Argentina and Chile.

In any event, a couple of years ago, communication between us (Brassgoggles, Tokyo, Mexico) became very scarce. The Mexican forum migrated to Facebook after fracturing from a single national forum into several smaller regional groups (there was infighting, and they were too big, you see, kind of like a Steampunk Supernova that exploded as it was too big to be stable).

Our contacts with the two national movements dwindled. Being beleaguered by real life issues, I failed to try to reinforce and cultivate the ties between the two forums and Brassgoggles, so my mission as ambassador didn't quite pan out as I desired.

[Melrose]

Thanks for that background, J. Wilhelm.
As a novice, what stood out to me in the preceding video and a couple of others I watched was that, while the Japanese embraced what I dare call the western Victorian era fashions, they added some beautiful touches, such as the masks more suggestive of Japanese folklore (and Studio Ghibli creatures),  a little martial arts hand-to-hand, and a little taiko drumming. It looked like the same old Steampunk fun with a dash of Asian spice. It works for me.

[J. Wilhelm]

Thanks for that background, J. Wilhelm.
As a novice, what stood out to me in the preceding video and a couple of others I watched was that, while the Japanese embraced what I dare call the western Victorian era fashions, they added some beautiful touches, such as the masks more suggestive of Japanese folklore (and Studio Ghibli creatures),  a little martial arts hand-to-hand, and a little taiko drumming. It looked like the same old Steampunk fun with a dash of Asian spice. It works for me.

The Japanese westernised themselves during the Meïji Period. They never really let go of the culture. Being largely in control of their own country meant they were able to prioritise the cultural elements they wanted to keep.

The Meïji Period is equivalent to the Victorian Era in the sense that this is the period when the industrial revolution arrived to their country. Wealthier people and nobles would adopt Western attire and customs, while poor people would keep their folkloric attire. Sartorially, it's a most interesting period of history, and you see the same thing happen during the Mexican "Porfiriato " Period prior to the Mexican Revolution  (civil war) of 1910, where you see similar British/American technology and high European fashion (French for Mexico) introduced into society, with differentiation based on social status.

The Victorian Era is more interesting to me outside of the UK in my humble opinion. The whole world was trying to cope with the new ways of thinking and working.