This is a heavy book to hold in one's hands, printed on glossy paper, with hundreds of photographs, for a really good price, an album of modern Indonesian history, from the 1900s to 2000s; and, as one turns the pages, first quickly and then increasingly slowly, the book is full of wonderful writing. There are not many books on Indonesian photography like that (and, as I think of it now, none, in fact, besides the essays in Rosalind Morris's volume).1 During the past decade or so, a substantial number of studies on colonial and postcolonial photography appeared, either general or area focused, but even among this multitude, Strassler's book is extraordinary. One reason might be Strassler's particular method: her touch-and-go approach, great care in setting up an analytical framework, and, as her research and writing progress, equally great courage to let herself be led and inspired by each new...
Skip Nav Destination
Article navigation
