Jan 04 - All We Are Saying Is Give Hipsters A Chance
By Stefano Blanca Sciacaluga
If there's one thing that interests me is seeing change in locations over periods of time. The Gibraltar of 2016 is a lot different to the Gibraltar of 2008, when I left for the UK; and in my time abroad and on other travels both before studying and after I've seen a lot of things that Gibraltar could benefit from and even things that in recent years I've seen crop up here that we didn't have before. I think it's safe to say (and I've had people agree with me) that Gibraltar is at least five years behind cities in the UK and in other European countries; and in all these cities I've been to the one common denominator for change are so-called hipsters.
Yes, that's right, hipsters. It seems the Internet has made it a thing to label anybody young and creative a hipster and has then made everybody think hating these kind of people is cool and the right thing to do; but hear me out, because there are a few ways in which we - Gibraltar - can benefit from having a few of these catalysts of e-hate around.
1. Restaurant industry
And by that I mean everything from bars to cafés to restaurants. Because I'm sick of going to places where the formula hasn't changed in years, where the attention to detail seems to have either never been there or has long disappeared or where there is just nothing exciting about going. It's no surprise that people become disenchanted with going out on the weekends and either stick to the Bruno's/Dusk combo or opt for a bit of Netflix and Chill. Whilst we're here repeatedly visiting establishments because we got great service that one time in 2013 for our cousin's 21st birthday, but every other time has been OK, elsewhere around the world restaurants, café's and bars are constantly trying to better themselves, to provide new menus, new experiences.
As a self-confessed food addict I spend a lot of my time researching food, reading recipes, cooking and watching TV shows. And it's in the comments section of these TV shows that I watch on YouTube that I noticed that most negative comments were along the lines of, "fu***ng hipsters!"; but all it takes is a couple of hours to realise that these "hipsters" are just young men and women, in their late twenties and early thirties, really challenging the way things are, wherever they are. I'm extremely happy to see a handful of places in Gibraltar that seem to have the right idea, we just need more people like them to really make a change.
2. Businesses
How great of a place would Gibraltar be for small independent businesses to set up shop here? Hipsters have a way with identifying niche markets and making the most of it, leading to diversity. Because you might think that a barber shop where they shampoo your big hipster beard with a lotion made from flowers than only grow for two weeks a year in the Himalayas is a bit too much (and I think so too), but trust me, the place where I've been recently getting my hair cut puts in a lot more attention to detail than more expensive places I've been to in the past; and they're not even hipsters, they're just providing good service for next to nothing. Same with the specialist wine shops that have popped up in the past couple of years. Before that young people just didn't drink wine, and now they're at wine tasting events, enjoying a glass or two after work and even pairing wine with food they're cooking for their loved ones; and all because there are people out there, in our own little city, that are willing to go the extra mile.
3. The arts
Some of you might remember the little project I put together with my art collective, Creative Gibraltar, at the beginning of the summer of last year. We set up Kitchen with little more than a space, a small budget and plenty of energy, ideas and desire to make a change to the art scene. And whilst I'm not tooting my own horn, did it really take a couple of guys in the mid-twenties and a couple of weeks to preparation to make veterans of the local art scene say, "Wow, this is a fantastic idea!"? Ultimately the way forward is in being with the times and the only way the arts can really progress in Gibraltar is if the youth are given a chance to express themselves freely and tear down any boundaries that have existed to now.
Just a month ago a good friend of mine inaugurated his framing shop/gallery at the end of Town Range, and in this short time has hosted an (ongoing) exhibition and a concert, with impromptu poetry recital. How great is that? We're a nation that is starved for culture, opera and ballet screenings, plays and other performances sell out quickly, it's like we want to take it all in but in the end we can't get enough. There is so much that can be done, I'm sure you have all seen or heard of different things that are happening in the art world elsewhere, and it's really up to young creatives, or hipsters as you may like to call them, to get ideas from all over the place and bring them into Gibraltar.
4. Style and fashion
Here's where I have to start off with congratulating a local sportswear shop for somehow managing to get a bunch of people in their truly hideous, own brand tracksuits. Because Gibraltarians love tracksuits. Full-on, any colour, for any occasion, tracksuits. They're stuck to our butts and arm pits. But they've got to go. Since I've been back from studying abroad, and especially in the last year and a half or two I've noticed a lot of the younger Gibraltarians really moving away from that look and looking more like their English counterparts; which might not always be a good thing, if you're going for a Dappy look, but it certainly means we are going somewhere, we're progressing, we are more aware of what we are wearing and taking that little bit extra time to put outfits together; which is great. I'm guessing that the choice of clothing shops in this city has something to do with it but with the Internet and online stores such as ASOS there is absolutely no excuse or no justification for head to toe Nike gear disasters. Leave that for when you're actually going to be doing sport. Because nobody wants to look like a nutter from the Jeremy Kyle show, which is why there are young people all over the world getting creative with what they're wearing and really making an effort; which is ultimately the way things could and should also be in Gibraltar.
Of course I'm not trying to convince you that the guy that all of a sudden has a beard because it's "manly" and trendy to have one, and can't stop going on about it and making fun of people who don't have one, is cool. Or the guy with the snapback gently perched on the top of his head barely making the most of the benefits of wearing a hat. Or even the guys from that cereal café in London, because as much of a good idea it may be they're just a couple of idiots. What I am saying is that there are a lot of young people put under the umbrella term of hipster that are being instrumental in promoting everything I've mentioned here, who are changing the way things are, providing new experiences for everybody and are just really a bunch of creative types putting their brains together to come up with new exciting things.
It's some food for thought, above is the menu, it's vegan and gluten free.
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