Nashville, Tennessee
Lisa Talbott

Metal, wood, leather, glass
ca. 2000’s
Length: 23 in
Strings – Lutes – Violin Family – Steampunk

Steampunk Art is a fusion of the past, borrowed from the Victorian era, showing respect for its complexity, and reinterpreting it with the imaginative future.  This full size 4/4 violin has been retrofitted for the steampunk universe with vintage brass gears, copper tubing, clockwork parts, and a steampunk bow.  These metallic touches of brass and  copper serve as accessories and detailing to add a hard industrial edge to the soft elegance of the wood.

Steampunk is a specific art form that was recognized and identified with the phrase ‘Steampunk’ in the 1980s. It was coined ‘Steampunk’ by science fiction author Kevin Wayne Jeter who also wrote the first cyberpunk novel ‘Dr. Adder.’  Jeter has written and published many books in this genre, such as Star Wars, Star Trek, and Warner Bros. ‘Blade Runner.’  Nevertheless, many scholars remind us that the concept of the ‘Steampunk’ existed in literature decades before the term was coined, especially when reading the visionary stories of authors HG Wells, Jules Verne, and Mary Shelley, back in the 1800s.