It’s
funny that “quirky” has become a whole niche market, since that seems to
contradict the whole concept of being offbeat. If you Google “quirky”, there’s
a specific aesthetic that shows up—an aesthetic I’m fond of, myself. Cat eye
glasses, scarves, cartoon owls, vintage bicycles, handlebar mustaches. I find
that look very charming, but I personally don’t regard it as quirky or even
indie. As soon as something becomes a trend (whether that trend is mainstream
or popular within a subculture), it is no longer independent. As soon as there’s
any subculture associated with it, it’s not unique.
The
concept of “quirky” has been watered down solely to an aesthetic and thus made
marketable, and that’s what I object to. It’s a way of trying to advertise and
sell an identity—or, rather, a look that’s sometimes used as shorthand for one.
But there is so much more to identity than what someone wears or what music
they listen to. Those do play into it, and they sometimes extend from a deeper
part of the self. But they don’t entirely define a person, and I feel that the
commercialization of “quirkiness” is an attempt to flatten a three-dimensional
and endlessly diverse concept onto a billboard.
As
I said, my problem is not with the style or the tastes in entertainment that
are associated with quirkiness. My problem is with the tortured contradiction
of telling consumers they can buy and wear an identity, selling them a
mass-produced aesthetic, and then pressuring them to be unique. Maybe there is
nothing fully unique at all, since it stops being so as soon as there is more than even one person doing it. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with that. Rather,
I’d say it’s to be expected.
I
think the fixation on quirkiness is related to our culture’s idealization of
independence, of the whole narrative of “I pulled myself up by my bootstraps
and never asked for help from anyone. I am a self-made person.” It’s ironic,
since indie culture tends to define itself in opposition to the corporate kind,
but both are a lot more interdependent than they like to admit.
While
it’s obviously possible to be financially successful, nobody is truly
financially independent. We depend on those who pay us, and they depend on
those who fund them. We need the roads to get us to work. Our careers are
hinged upon the education that prepares us. We rely on banks and credit unions
and factories that print money and credit cards. There are also structural
privileges set in place which many lean on, such as the greater opportunities afforded
to those who come from rich families or born able-bodied. (The
aforementioned types of preferences are unfair and need to change, and those
are just to name a few.) My point is that, while achievement is certainly more
of a challenge for some than for others, nobody attains success without any
kind of collaboration—even if the help simply came from the conditions in which
we live.
The
same is true for artistic endeavors. The end result may be unique, but it’s created
from resources that already exist and were put in place by others. Art
supplies, materials, and even the sources of inspiration are all provided by
the world around us. Similarly, no one is completely emotionally or
intellectually independent. We may not care what everybody thinks, but we all value the opinions of at least a
select group of others, or even the hypothetical approval of a future self we hope
to become. We may construct our own theories, but like all other creations, we
work with what we’re given and connect concepts that have already been
established. We combine them in new ways. We branch off preexisting ideas. It’s
all patchwork, and the patches are made up of threads spun by our surroundings.
So feel free to wear vintage sweaters and get a tattoo of an owl if that appeals to you. It's a fun look and it can brighten up the whole scenery around you. But here's a word of advice that I'm leaving as an offering, and only in the friendliest way: If you consume things that are marketed or widely seen as "quirky," do it because you genuinely take pleasure in them, not because you think you're supposed to. And if you come up with a new idea or become wealthy, that's wonderful. You deserve to take pride in it and be happy. At the same time, though, please remember the conditions, inspirations, and people who brought you there. Do what you can to help others contribute their own offerings to the world.
