Retro-Future Prop: AtomPunk Geiger Counter

The Project Brief

"What is Retro Future? Imagine if the Victorians had computers. Imagine if there was space travel during the Roaring Twenties. It is steam-powered artificial hearts and video phones with punch cards. Take the technology of the future and wrap it in the aesthetics and scientific beliefs of the past. Look at films like Brazil, Metropolis, Wild Wild West, The Rocketeer. Or TV shows like The Jetsons, Loki, Maniac, Umbrella Academy. Look at Steampunk, Clockpunk, Atompunk, Decopunk, and all the punks. It should be a self-contained and portable object (though it may include a power cord) no larger than 2'x2'x2' and no smaller than 6"x6"x6". "

I have a strange love and fascination for all things nuclear power. What it is, how it effects us, and how it has the power to change the story of humanity within minutes of catastrophe. I love projects like "The Atomic Priesthood Project" and the book "On the Beach" by Neil Shute, so of course I had to pick a Geiger counter as my prop element. As for the 'punk,' I realized I had never really challenged myself to make a sleek, and well-polished prop, one that could not hide behind "grunge-ing it up" if the paint job got messed-up. Because of how sleek the aesthetic is and how tied to sci-fi/'Raygun gothic' Atompunk is, I knew it would tie all my strands of aesthetic goals, fabrication goals, and storytelling goals into a perfect bow. Created for the common cosmonaut's exploration on Earth and beyond the stars, the Atompunk Geiger Counter was born to be carried in every tool kit and spaceship!

Build Process

Mood board for the project.

Fusion 360 mockup for the outside shell.

3D resin printed shell in the process of being painted. Shell is attached together via magnets.

Finished Geiger Counter, front view. The "nuclear power" symbol serves as the button to turn the device on and off. Light inside shell indicates if radiation is 'high' or 'low' in the area.

Back view of the final product.

To pair with this project, I also created an illustration inspired by the atompunk artwork I used as a reference. Piece was illustrated in Procreate.