Coming from the outskirts of a major city like Chicago can be isolating, the surplus of people and options creates an individualized experience for everyone that lives there. While finding your footing in a populated place is glamorized by the media, what isn’t shown is the time spent in isolation. As the digital age proves that many idealized “lifestyles” are just good marketing, we are left wondering which ones are authentic and attainable. We are pushed further and further away from each other, and value labels like “self-sufficient” to fill the emotional gaps the disconnect leaves us with. In an age where status can be bought, sold, and faked on a screen, what is true luxury?
When people think of luxury, they usually think of money. This money could manifest in expensive real estate, jewelry, clothes, travel, etc. It seems luxury has its own brand, often popping up in the same polos and pearl necklaces. While this is definitely an old image of luxury, many offshoots of it are in the ring for consumers' attention. People see influencers with designer bags and perfect hair market their lives as attainable to the masses. It seems like their job is to show you the trail of items they’ve bought, bringing them to fame, then make you feel bad when you follow the yellow tag road, yet don’t find yourself in this carefree and aesthetic lifestyle. Some would say luxury is the ability to choose, but to be seen as luxurious in the present day, there are seemingly a set number of boxes you can fall into. All of these boxes are decorated with different adjectives: “clean girl”, “downtown aesthetic”, “old money”. Even the glitz of the club scene is beginning to be packaged into its own brand. Companies will do their jobs to sell physical items as lifestyles, promising that if you just change your wardrobe again, you’ll reach a half-baked nirvana. It’s hard to find designs that aren’t captioned with a trendy buzzword, yet it seems so desirable to have a label. Despite everyone’s perceived wish of individuality, the siren song of copycat culture becomes the backbone of our lives.
When people think of luxury, they usually think of money. This money could manifest in expensive real estate, jewelry, clothes, travel, etc. It seems luxury has its own brand, often popping up in the same polos and pearl necklaces. While this is definitely an old image of luxury, many offshoots of it are in the ring for consumers' attention. People see influencers with designer bags and perfect hair market their lives as attainable to the masses. It seems like their job is to show you the trail of items they’ve bought, bringing them to fame, then make you feel bad when you follow the yellow tag road, yet don’t find yourself in this carefree and aesthetic lifestyle. Some would say luxury is the ability to choose, but to be seen as luxurious in the present day, there are seemingly a set number of boxes you can fall into. All of these boxes are decorated with different adjectives: “clean girl”, “downtown aesthetic”, “old money”. Even the glitz of the club scene is beginning to be packaged into its own brand. Companies will do their jobs to sell physical items as lifestyles, promising that if you just change your wardrobe again, you’ll reach a half-baked nirvana. It’s hard to find designs that aren’t captioned with a trendy buzzword, yet it seems so desirable to have a label. Despite everyone’s perceived wish of individuality, the siren song of copycat culture becomes the backbone of our lives.
With the world’s end goal being efficiency, so much has been lost in such a short time. Fast fashion has a whole host of ethical dilemmas attached, but it has also robbed us of choosing clothes based on personal taste rather than trends. The push to digitize every last thing has made lampposts and bulletin boards bare, and has taken the fun out of strolls through neighborhoods. With many previously print sources adopting social media as their primary engagement, we lose the tactile joy of flipping through a team’s hard work. What are we doing with all this saved time? Largely, we aren’t using it to show up for each other and our goals. We minimize aspects of ourselves so they are more digestible, and our experiences go down quicker. But humans aren’t meant to live life like it’s a diet pill, there is no one “right way” to engage in the world or art. While trends wash over us like preplanned tides, we are promised that if we buy the shiny things ,we will live the life we’ve always dreamed.
It is easy to point to one thing to blame the emerging culture of isolation on, whether it be the internet, the pandemic, the economy, or individual failings, everyone is looking for the thief that seems to have stolen the vibrancy found in previous decades. While it’s easy to get stuck in nostalgia for “simpler times”, looking back does nothing for us but remind us where we came from.
Everyone has things they’d like to change about the world, but that shouldn’t rob us of our enjoyment of the present moment. There are so many wonderful things to be found, it just takes looking up from your phone to see them. While we all look around to find this so-called “better” thing, I hope people catch each other's eyes. Life shouldn’t be an echochamber–bouncing ideas and passions off of other people is a treasure worth seeking.
It is easy to point to one thing to blame the emerging culture of isolation on, whether it be the internet, the pandemic, the economy, or individual failings, everyone is looking for the thief that seems to have stolen the vibrancy found in previous decades. While it’s easy to get stuck in nostalgia for “simpler times”, looking back does nothing for us but remind us where we came from.
Everyone has things they’d like to change about the world, but that shouldn’t rob us of our enjoyment of the present moment. There are so many wonderful things to be found, it just takes looking up from your phone to see them. While we all look around to find this so-called “better” thing, I hope people catch each other's eyes. Life shouldn’t be an echochamber–bouncing ideas and passions off of other people is a treasure worth seeking.
Pittsburgh is ever-changing, and it has come to be defined by its community. While it is hidden behind more publicized cities, its life force has become the scenes that encompass it. When I first came to the city, I was amazed at how many people have found their own modes to share creativity, and how artists and art-enjoyers alike band together to create something meaningful, even if it’s fleeting. I’ve been led down a path of bands who know each other, friends who make zines and posters for them, venues that search out local talent to work with, and designers who add their own flare to the scene. Some have a large resume that helped them find their practice and some have found their calling simply by accident. The lack of hierarchy combined with the openness of everyone sometimes feels like stepping back in time to the “old days” that past generations love to sing praises to. Meeting with artists in Pittsburgh has revealed the passion at the heart of the music and visual arts scene. In a vast ocean of people striving for greatness, it’s easy to feel lost at sea. Finding a net of security with people not only willing to collaborate, but hoping to, has been its own form of paradise. Even as a college student, I feel embraced by a city I’ve just met. It took pushing myself out of my comfort zone, but it is a community of creatives I will never forget.
There is nothing more alluring than a chance to do something truly meaningful, but why should we have to trample on others to do it? “It’s the journey, not the destination” is a time-worn saying, but it’s true. Some of the greatest joys (and sadnesses) in life stem from our interactions with other people. Simply because it takes effort–and even when it leads you down roads you didn’t want to travel–community is the biggest luxury the human experience can offer. Whether it be creative pursuits or just people to hang out with, we could all do well to bring others into our inner worlds. Luxury, being community, cannot be bought because it is not a product–it’s the people around you that can help you grow and expand your horizons that are priceless.
There is nothing more alluring than a chance to do something truly meaningful, but why should we have to trample on others to do it? “It’s the journey, not the destination” is a time-worn saying, but it’s true. Some of the greatest joys (and sadnesses) in life stem from our interactions with other people. Simply because it takes effort–and even when it leads you down roads you didn’t want to travel–community is the biggest luxury the human experience can offer. Whether it be creative pursuits or just people to hang out with, we could all do well to bring others into our inner worlds. Luxury, being community, cannot be bought because it is not a product–it’s the people around you that can help you grow and expand your horizons that are priceless.