DIY Style

Luvaas (anthropology, Drexel U.) examines the do-it-yourself movement through an ethnographic case study of the indie fashion and music scene in Indonesia, where young fashion designers, label owners, and musicians use new media technologies, pirated software, and copy machines and silkscreens to create clothing lines and record labels outside of corporate channels of production and distribution. He spent about a year as a participant-observer in urban Indonesia (mainly Bandung in West Java and Yogyakarta in Central Java) to analyze how Indonesians have used DIY fashion, music, and media to create a place for themselves, challenge concepts of national and regional identity, and assert themselves onto the world stage in their own way. He examines the ethos of the movement (viewing it as an alternative form of capitalism), its meanings and expressions, and its cultural implications. The book is aimed at students and scholars in anthropology, fashion, media studies, cultural studies, and sociology. Earlier versions of some chapters have been previously published in journals. Distributed in the US by Bloomsbury USA. Annotation ©2013 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)