It occurred to me that I’ve never really outlined who I hope to interview. At least, not on the blog. I’ve set up a LiveJournal account to get insight into the huge LiveJournal Steampunk community, so I’m going to post the same basic introduction here that I posted there. For posterity’s sake and all that jazz.

I’m looking to speak to the following groups of persons involved in the Steampunk culture:

• Artist
  Skilled in imaginative, non-functioning art meant for personal satisfaction
• Cosplayer
  Skilled in creating imaginative fashion, assuming a fictional identity while dressing the part
• Commentator
  Interested in reporting trends, new projects; the “town criers” of the community
• Inventor
  Skilled in imaginative, potentially functioning art meant for experimentation and/or exploration
• Merchant
  Interested in receiving payment for services and/or products
• Scholar
  Interested in studying the phenomenon of Steampunk itself

What is the goal?

The goal is to create a holistic academic understanding of the act of creative appropriation, specifically, how involvement with Steampunk reflects and/or influences your personal identity. A potential outcome could be a design framework to help professionals design for such opportunities.

I hope to observe and/or interview at least two-to-three persons from each of the previously mentioned categories. I hope to observe the creative practices of artists, cosplayers, and inventors. I intend to interview all categories of persons. If you happen to live within 100 miles of Bloomington, IN, I would love to observe your creative practices, if possible.