Click photo to enlarge
Iain Clark holds a steam-powered beer tankard on display in
a steampunk exhibition at the Forrester Gallery. Photo by
Sally Rae.
"Tomorrow as it used to be" is the catch phrase for a
spectacular steampunk exhibition which opens at the Forrester
Gallery today.
Yesterday, steampunk enthusiast and manufacturing jeweller
Iain Clark said Oamaru could become the steampunk capital of
the southern hemisphere.
"As far as I know, nowhere else has done anything like this.
We may as well lay claim," he said.
Mr Clark had the idea of a steampunk exhibition which would
add an extra dimension to the town's Victorian heritage
celebrations this month.
He had previously worked in the medium - he created an
intricate ring based on ancient navigational devices which
won a national award - without realising there was such a
genre.
Then somebody mentioned, "Oh, that's steampunk."
He took a steam-powered beer tankard, which he had made for
an Alf's Army battle last year, to Victorian heritage
celebrations chairwoman Sally Hope and proposed introducing
steampunk as part of the celebrations.
A small group of enthusiasts also made a video to sell the
idea to Weta Workshop, the visual effects company that has
won many Academy Awards, and sent a steampunk USB device,
made by Mr Clark, to Weta creative director Richard Taylor.
They also visited Weta.
Weta agreed to be involved with the exhibition and will be
introducing Dr Grordbort, alongside works from Otago artists.
Mr Clark was thrilled Weta had got involved and that
Forrester Gallery director Warwick Smith had seen its
potential, "I just can't believe how much it has taken off.
Next year I'm expecting even greater things."
He hoped to get schools involved, saying it was a wonderful
opportunity for imagination, as well as the recycling centre.
Mr Smith said the exhibition was quite unlike "anything we've
had before".
