The VSCO Girl: What is it, really?

Heidi Huntington’s article, “Subversive Memes: Internet Memes as a Form of Rhetoric” tackles the topic of internet memes as a form of discourse subversive from the mainstream media. Throughout the article, Huntington explains that memes are more than mere internet humor and that they operate as symbolic texts to persuade audiences. 

I agree with Huntington’s overall claim and believe that memes can hold much more meaning than inciting laughter. Memes can act as a unique language and unite a group of people that share knowledge of the meme’s meaning. I really enjoyed reading Huntington’s article and believe that it lends credibility to the purpose and role of memes in popular culture.

One popular meme that quickly became widespread these past few months was the “VSCO girl.” The meme became popular on TikTok, a social media platform for short videos, and has since taken off. According to Urban Dictionary, a VSCO girl can be defined as “the tumblr girls of 2019”. The name comes from VSCO, a photo editing app, known for its dreamy and colorful filters. The VSCO girl uniform consists of scrunchies, puka shell necklaces, a Fjällräven backpack, and a sticker-covered Hydro Flask water bottle.

The audience for the VSCO girl meme tends to skew towards young high school students, as they’re the ones who are most familiar with VSCO girls and play into the stereotype by dressing the part and posting about it on social media. By doing this, young teenagers perpetuate the meme of a VSCO girl and fuel its popularity.

The message this meme is communicating is that a VSCO girl is the new class of “it girl” that hasn’t been seen before. Whereas popular girls before had a polished, put together image, the VSCO girl is aspirational in a more approachable way. A VSCO girl’s perfectly messy aesthetic and quirky laid back attitude has become popular among the population of teenage girls.

The VSCO girl meme reflects teenage girls and their shifting interests and priorities. Before, teenage girls were much more conscious about their image and looks. The wave of VSCO girls reflects how girls don’t just want to be put together and perfect and instead don’t want to be so preoccupied with their appearance.

The meme of the VSCO girl has maintained popularity for the past few months and shows no sign of slowing down. Whether it be genuine or as a parody, posts about VSCO girls are still prevalent and express the deeper meaning of teenage girls and how they present themselves.