steampunk women

Doing the research for this ‘Around the World Steampunk Tour’ is really fascinating . Not only are we getting a handle on how wide spread the Steampunk culture is but we’re learning how very different the culture is from one place to another.
Our tour has taken us from our home ground in Seattle through Central and South America; across the wide Pacific to Australia and New Zealand; and now northward into the Philippines.
Unlike our previous virtual stops, the Philippines show us a very different slant on Steampunk. You see, if you Google “Steampunk” and a country name, you are usually flooded with images of people in costume, devices, etc. Not so with the Philippines. There, you get art. Sculpture, painting, carvings, literature, and the like. Not much in the way of costume or reenactment. We did find one costumer but despite the word Steampunk in their name, they seemed to create far more leisure and sportswear than actual Steampunk clothing. One gets the feeling that Steampunk runs deeper in the psyche in the Philippines and has less of a ‘fancy dress’ nature.

Paolo Chikaimo – the man who appears to be at the center of all things Steampunk in the Philippines.

One thing for certain, wherever you go chasing information on Philippine Steampunk, one name recurs. Paolo Chikiamco is at the heart of the speculative and alternative history movement in that country. This prolific writer is an attorney by training and holds some very impressive credentials in that arena as well but his true passion seems to be the blending of traditional Filipino stories, culture and imaginative musings to create works of worldwide acclaim.
So, here’s part of the rich artistic Steampunk culture to be found in the Philippines. (oh, and one picture of a young woman in costume and another in some really cool goggles.) Check out the Steampunk Philippines Facebook page and Mr. Chikiamco on Rocket Kapre. We’re sure you won’t be disappointed.
NOTE: Special thanks to tetortsz.wordpress.com for their superb blog post on the first ever Philippine Steampunk Art Exhibition which took place in October 2014.

The world round, steampunk women are all the same. Tough, self reliant, confident, and armed!	These are the goggles from the Steampunk Philippines Facebook page. We love them!
A truly fantastic device from the Facebook page. It rather resembles Bell & Howell meets Vicker’s Arms, doesn’t it?	This is labeled as a steampunk baston. Not quite sure what a baston is, but it looks wicked!
The cover of High Society – Chikaimo’s ‘Philippine Steampunk’ graphic novel. You can find it on Amazon.	An interior page of High Society
A spectacular Steampunk chess set from Philippine Steampunk art exhibition.	Another piece from the exhibition. We wanted to rework our super sized Christmas train. I think we’ve found the inspiration right here!
Gorgeous steampunk wall art. We have just the spot for the left hand piece in our library.	Not from the exhibition (as far as we know) but a wonderful illustration. We love the lithographic look of combined traditional images and steampunk gear.
Something more in the vein of ‘traditional’ steampunk art but with a decided twist. Note the exaggerated elongation of the head. We have an old Philippine wood carving that bears a similar feature.	And speaking of wood carving, just look at these wonderfully intricate gears. Some Philippine woods are hard enough to make workable gears.