They come out of their eclectic, pseudo-impoverished living quarters to engage in civilization after finishing their favourite Steinbeck novel for the umpteenth time.
They come out of their eclectic, pseudo-impoverished living quarters to engage in civilization after finishing their favourite Steinbeck novel for the umpteenth time.
Seldom seen in direct sunlight, perhaps due to a chronic hangover, hipsters are the cultural hand-me-down of the 90s grunge generation.
Thrifty maternity jerseys, pendants, flat caps, beanies, skinny jeans and backpacks make up the foundation of a hipster’s aesthetic.
But, while pairing vintage second-hand clothes with a pair of designer jeans and aviators might make you look like a proto hipster, apparel alone doesn’t cut it.
A lot of effort goes into looking unkempt.
Rigorous cardio workouts to maintain an ideally androgynous emaciated frame, facial hair trimming for the boys and donning make-up to look ‘natural’ for the girls, are only a few of the trade secrets hipsters will never admit to.
Hipsters want to be more ironic than Alanis Morisette on her wedding day.
They dress like kids, yet wear bow ties and sport moustaches. It may seem random and uncoordinated, but it’s not. It’s ironic.
It’s a passive rebellion to what society deems ‘appropriate’.
Baggy clothes on a skinny hipster is ironic. Excessive partying and making the top of your class is ironic. Looking homeless even though your parents fund every whim is ironic. Being a boy and wearing girls' clothes is ironic. Being a girl and wearing combat boots and a sundress is ironic.
‘Hipsterdom’ isn’t a new phenomenon. Sightings have been reported from as early as 2000, meaning the trend is already into its second decade.
Big cities breed a certain aesthetic in people with capitalist social pressures. But when the need to fit in falls away, what you’re essentially left with, is a hipster.
A hipster is where the fibres of socially-constructed reality are beginning to fray. They embrace their quirks and eccentricities without shame or fear of being shunned.
Hipsters roam in close-knit social circles (in the shape of a dream-catcher, or a triangle, I imagine) and couldn’t be bothered with anyone’s approval, apart from their own.
They appear nonchalant, easygoing and content with life, but this show is all in the name of fitting in. They’re so culturally confused, it makes them clearly identifiable.
Hipsters can even be more pretentious than the popular girls in high school. They appear to be non-conformists, conforming to non-conformity.
So where does Grahamstown fit in on the scale of hipsterdom?
Rhodes is virtually the only liberal arts university in the country and it attracts a very special breed of people who didn’t quite fit in where they originally came from. That makes it a perfect hipster breeding ground.
Grahamstown hipsters mostly listen to indie music. Artists like Metric, Lana Del Rey and The Naked and Famous pretty much make up the soundtrack of a hipster’s G’town life.
By day they can be seen hanging out around the Drostdy arch, ordering their favourite caffeinated beverage or longboarding down the hill from Monument.
Often choosing a longboard over a car at least makes them environmentally friendly, but they make up the carbon emissions by smoking rollies or clove cigarettes from Indonesia.
The local nightlife of a hipster is rather more mysterious.
Tunnels is a renowned trance party venue, which attracts hipsters from far and wide, most of them suspiciously energetic and affectionate upon arrival.
Other common hangouts for the not-so-special gatherings include the Monastery and Olde 65 on New Street, which cater for the obscure socialites.
Ultimately, there is a subtle familiarity to a hipster’s existence, which goes beyond the stereotypical guidelines and weird mysteriousness.
They are bringing back the movement that revolutionised the 60s and 70s. A hipster is basically the new-age hippie.
But like with most things, rebranding is needed to make the lifestyle less of a reaction to conformity and more of an appropriate response to the here and now.
