Does Steampunk make Oxford, England, the world's coolest city?

In the city of tweed, Oxford, England, Steampunk art is finally enjoying its first museum exhibition at Museum of the History of Science. The free show gathers Steampunk art from around the globe providing an excellent crash course in the form.

Bridging pop culture aesthetics found in cinema and using the fantastic gadgets of yesteryear (mostly Victorian times), Steampunk is a welcoming foothold for geeks and nerds. Some of the grandfathers of Steampunk were Marcel Duchamp and Pablo Picasso (when he turned a bicycle seats into a bulls in 1942) but the form remained in hibernation for decades.

 Like many artists, I started making stuff in this style before there was a name for it. In my case it was in 1982 as a kid listening for the first time to Thomas Dolby's Golden Age of the Wireless and his incorporating history with art. Most Steampunk artists would include among their influences Blade Runner, Jules Verne (in 2000 I honeymooned in Snæfellsjökull, Iceland, the site of his A Journey to the Center of the Earth), Brazil, Tim Burton, and later, the game Myst.

The show is up until February 21st, 2010.