What Is Steampunk? The Aesthetic, Explained

Steampunk asks a playful question: what if the Victorian era had invented the future? Imagine airships instead of aeroplanes, steam-powered computers, mechanical arms built from brass and gears, and adventurers in top hats and goggles. As a look, steampunk mixes nineteenth-century clothing with industrial, handmade gadgets. As a community, it is one of the most creative and DIY-minded subcultures in the world.

What is steampunk?

Steampunk began as a genre of science fiction and fantasy set in an alternate nineteenth century, usually inspired by Victorian Britain or the American Wild West, where steam power drives astonishing technology. It has since become an aesthetic in fashion, art, design and interiors, and a subculture with conventions, makers and costume communities. Its key materials are brass, copper, leather, wood and glass, and its key symbol is the gear.

Where it came from

The roots are in the science fiction of the nineteenth century itself: Jules Verne’s Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Seas (1870), with its submarine Nautilus, and H.G. Wells’s The Time Machine (1895). In the 1980s, a group of American writers including K.W. Jeter, Tim Powers and James Blaylock were writing fantasies set in Victorian London. In a 1987 letter to the science-fiction magazine Locus, Jeter jokingly suggested calling their work “steampunk”, a twist on the then-popular “cyberpunk”. The name stuck. William Gibson and Bruce Sterling’s novel The Difference Engine (1990), imagining a Victorian computer revolution, became a classic of the genre.

In the 2000s, steampunk grew into a real-world subculture. Makers built working gadgets and costumes, sold handmade pieces online, and gathered at conventions and festivals. Films and games, from Hayao Miyazaki’s Castle in the Sky (1986) and Howl’s Moving Castle (2004) to Steamboy (2004), Guy Ritchie’s Sherlock Holmes (2009) and Martin Scorsese’s Hugo (2011), spread the look to a wide audience.

The codes

• Clothes: corsets, bustle skirts, high-necked blouses, waistcoats, frock and tail coats, breeches, aviator jackets.
• Accessories: brass goggles, top hats and bowlers, pocket watches, leather belts and holsters, gloves, parasols, monocles.
• Gadgets: handmade “inventions” made from gears, clock parts, valves and copper tubing.
• Shoes: lace-up leather boots.
• Colours and materials: brown, burgundy, black, cream, brass, copper, bronze and dark wood.

See the mood

The references

Books: Jules Verne, H.G. Wells, K.W. Jeter’s Morlock Night, The Difference Engine, Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials, Philip Reeve’s Mortal Engines.

Film and TV: Castle in the Sky, Howl’s Moving Castle, Steamboy, Wild Wild West (1999), Sherlock Holmes (2009), Hugo (2011), Arcane (2021).

Games: BioShock Infinite, Dishonored, Machinarium.

Why it caught on

Steampunk combines romance, adventure and craftsmanship. In a world of sealed, smooth digital devices, its visible gears and hand-built machines celebrate understanding how things work. It is also a perfect hobby for makers, cosplayers and history lovers, with endless room for invention and storytelling. Many fans create a whole character, an inventor, a sky pirate, an explorer, with a name and backstory to match the outfit.

The debate

The Victorian age that steampunk celebrates was also the age of the British Empire, industrial exploitation and colonialism, including in India. Critics argue that steampunk can romanticise this era, especially when costumes use pith helmets and “explorer” imagery. Many fans address this directly, creating steampunk stories and outfits from the point of view of colonised peoples, or inventing alternative histories set in Asia, Africa and Latin America. Writers have also coined related ideas such as “silkpunk”, inspired by East Asian technology and history.

How to wear it now

For an everyday nod, try a fitted waistcoat or corset belt, a high-necked blouse, lace-up boots and one statement accessory, such as a vintage pocket watch or brass jewellery. For events, go further with goggles, a top hat and a handmade gadget. The best steampunk looks are customised, not bought ready-made.

Where it is now

Steampunk’s mainstream peak was in the early 2010s, but it remains a lively subculture with festivals, maker communities and cosplay. Its influence lives on in fantasy films, games and interior design, especially in industrial-style cafés and bars filled with Edison bulbs and exposed pipes.

Related aesthetics

Cyberpunk · Goth · Dark Academia · Royalcore · Piratecore

Learn more: hear from more voices

An explainer on how steampunk went from fiction to subculture, and a long look at where the “punk” in steampunk came from.

Read more

• Steampunk for Historians: It’s About Time — Perspectives on History, American Historical Association. What historians can learn from the genre.
• Vapour trails — Eye. A design magazine’s look at steampunk’s visual language.

Sources: literary histories of steampunk, including K.W. Jeter’s 1987 letter to Locus; coverage of steampunk maker and convention culture. Videos are embedded from YouTube and remain the work of their creators. Linked articles belong to their publishers.