Dieselpunk + Steampunk Culture

November 2009 Articles (57)

ART HISTORY - Le Corbusier's Utopian urban-renewal plans

Le Corbusier's Utopian urban-renewal plans

Ludwig Mies Van der Rohe's model for a glass skyscraper

Le Corbusier, like Wright, had few major commissions during the 1920s, but he continually advanced his ideas and his reputation through his writings and through his visionary urban-planning projects. These… Continue

Added by Tome Wilson on November 30, 2009 at 5:00pm — 1 Comment

International Style. White City

Following Tome's overview of interwar architecture, it's quite natural to mention a Mediterranean city with the highest concentration of the International style artifacts.

The locals use to call this style 'Bauhaus', ignoring the fact that a vast majority of architects who worked there in the 1920s-1950s hadn't come from Dessau. In fact, this concentration is a result of joint effort of a very different architects, most of them with an Eastern… Continue

Added by lord_k on November 29, 2009 at 7:00am — 2 Comments

Living life the Doc Savage way

Live by the code

Let me strive, every moment of my life, to make myself better and better, to the best of my ability, that all may profit by it. Let me think of the right, and lend all my assistance to those who need it, with no regard for anything but… Continue

Added by Tome Wilson on November 28, 2009 at 3:30pm — 2 Comments

Night and Day

Sanuel H. Gottscho's (1875-1971) photographs of New York are rational - and romantic. His vision brings us right to Gotham, through the twilight and night to the sunny morning revealing all the city's power and grandeur.

It shows us how different the cityscape may look in different hours and seasons:

Samuel Gottscho acquired his first camera in 1896. From 1896 to 1920 he photographed part… Continue

Added by lord_k on November 28, 2009 at 6:30am — 1 Comment

ART HISTORY - Le Corbusier's Villa Savoye at Poissy

Le Corbusier's Villa Savoye at Poissy

The masterpiece among Le Corbusier's early houses was the Villa Savoye at Poissy, thirty miles from Paris. Along with Mies's German Pavilion, the Villa Savoye is generally regarded as a paradigm of the International Style.… Continue

Added by Tome Wilson on November 27, 2009 at 5:00pm — No Comments

Robot 1920 by Giacobino

Robot 1920 by Giacobino

Learn more about Giacobino at http://giacobino.deviantart.com/ [Spanish / NSFW]

Added by Tome Wilson on November 27, 2009 at 11:26am — 3 Comments

Lord K's Garage - 13th Issue. BRITISH CARS, PART I

It's easy to get lost in the multitude of makes and models. But it's even easier to spot a British automobile among others. They have something in common - all of them, modest and luxurious, primitive and complex.

1929 Lagonda 14/50 Two-Litre

Today, just a brief overview of these wonderful cars. 1920s and early 1930s.

Enjoy the slideshow:

Find… Continue

Added by lord_k on November 27, 2009 at 7:30am — 2 Comments

ART HISTORY - Le Corbusier's building blocks of The International Style

Le Corbusier's building blocks of The International Style

Among the generation of architectural pioneers who rose to prominence during the 1920s, Le Corbusier, the artistic pseudonym of the Swiss Charles-Edouard Jeanneret, was a searching… Continue

Added by Tome Wilson on November 26, 2009 at 5:00pm — No Comments

Hope your Thanksgiving is going better than mine.

Send in photos of your epic holiday battle against the dreaded turkey.

Let me know there's still hope for… Continue

Added by Tome Wilson on November 26, 2009 at 1:00pm — 4 Comments

Share Your Love

It's about six months since I came here. Six months - quite a sufficient amount of time for summing up. So I took the liberty of analyzing our development, and the picture below is just an eye-stopper.

This network is a success, so far so good. Not a 'fantastic success story', but an indisputable success, thanks to Tome. He succeeded in creating a friendly,… Continue

Added by lord_k on November 26, 2009 at 12:30pm — No Comments

WARNING! Giant Turkey Sighted Near St. Louis!

Proceed with extreme… Continue

Added by Tome Wilson on November 26, 2009 at 12:30am — 1 Comment

ART HISTORY - The International Style

The International Style

After World War I, communication among architects was reestablished so rapidly and stylistic diffusion was so widespread that it became difficult to speak of national styles. Rather, centers of experimentation arose where architects and artists from all over now converged. Major forces in the formation the style were de Stiji art and architecture in Holland, the new experiments in German architecture, and though he never… Continue

Added by Tome Wilson on November 25, 2009 at 5:00pm — No Comments

London Transport, 1920s-1930s

Toys? State-of-art models? No, real red doubledeckers under one roof with the green ones, as well as trams, trolleybuses, taxicabs and subway trains.

London Transport Museum in Covent Garden is a proud owner of great vehicles and also possesses a vast image archive, available online.

Let us see some pictures from the interwar era:…

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Added by lord_k on November 25, 2009 at 7:00am — 2 Comments

ART HISTORY - The Bauhaus' move to Dessau

The Bauhaus' move to Dessau

When the Bauhaus was moved to Dessau in 1925, Gropius closed his Weimar office, ending his partnership vith Meyer. His most important architectural achievement at the Bauhaus was the design for the new buildings at… Continue

Added by Tome Wilson on November 24, 2009 at 5:00pm — No Comments

Arthur Radebaugh: The Bright Future

Arthur Radebaugh (1906-1974) was a top-notch commercial illustrator who worked for companies as diverse as Chrysler and Coca-Cola.

He was based in Detroit from the 1930s to 1960s, and much of his work anticipated design revolutions in the automotive and other industries. He once described his work as "halfway between science fiction and designs for modern living."

Radebaugh settled long-term roots in Detroit. He drew ads for major…

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Added by lord_k on November 24, 2009 at 7:00am — 3 Comments

ART HISTORY - The Architecture of Gropius

The Architecture of Gropius

After spending two years in the office of Peter Bebrens, Walter Gropius (1883-1969) established his own practice in Berlin. In 1911 he joined forces with his partner Adolph Meyer (1881-1929) to build a factory for the Fagus Shoe… Continue

Added by Tome Wilson on November 23, 2009 at 5:00pm — 2 Comments

Monday Camera #3: Hasselblad

It's not easy to recognize the make. It looks so military... hell, it is military! But the shape seems familiar. Box-like body. Detachable back. Big bad lens.

Yes, this is the first brainchild of Victor Hasselblad, made in the 1940s for the Swedish Air Force. It took only a few steps to transform this spartan device into a camera that will conquer the Moon.

During World War II, the Swedish military captured a fully functioning… Continue

Added by lord_k on November 23, 2009 at 6:30am — No Comments

Dieselpunks in Art Deco

I thought I'd give our Dieselpunks logo the Art Deco treatment as a business card design.

It's a first shot, but what do you think?

Added by Tome Wilson on November 22, 2009 at 5:30pm — 5 Comments

The Turn of the Century Called...

The Turn of the Century Called...

And it wants its waistcoat, specs, and mustache back. Between gin-fizz-slinging barmen in suspenders and Brooklyn dudes in bowler hats, you couldn't swing a walking stick in '09 without hitting a Teddy Roosevelt look-alike.

From GQ (America) - December 2009

Click on the link below to read a short article about the retro fashion movement in New York.…

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Added by Tome Wilson on November 22, 2009 at 11:26am — No Comments

Aircraft Carriers

One of the Diesel Era symbols is the aircraft carrier, born during the Great War to become the most important warship class of the next war.

This is USS Langley, CV-1, the first aircraft carrier of the US Navy. Converted from the collier Jupiter in 1922, she entered service just when the British rapidly expanded their carrier fleet. The very first carrier, HMS Ark Royal, was converted from a merchant ship in 1914. She…

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Added by lord_k on November 22, 2009 at 7:00am — 3 Comments