Dream job alert: the V&A museum in is looking to hire a British to become its expert.
has become famous for the culture surrounding it, with fans making signs, friendship bracelets, and other memorabilia before attending the US artist’s shows.
And now ahead of the European leg of the Eras tour the V&A is looking for insight and analysis about the culture behind these crafts.
The Grammy award-winning singer’s fans often swap friendship bracelets with each other at the shows, causing plenty of discourse online ahead of every tour date as fans prepare to partake in the exchanges.
London’s Victoria & Albert museum has long had an interest in documenting and analysing fandoms, having already filled four superfan adviser roles for Toby jugs (a kind of 18th-century pottery), Pokemon cards, Gorpcore clothing (a fashion trend in which outdoor recreational clothing is worn in everyday life), and Lego.
The star was the biggest-selling global recording artist in 2023, the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) said, and her millions of fans are known for their to the singer herself and the culture of the fandom surrounding her.
This was made particularly clear when Swift began dating Kansas City Chiefs player Travis Kelce last year, skyrocketing the already popular sporting franchise to via her attendance at the games.
The museum is also looking for people passionate about Crocs footwear, emojis, and drag, among other cultural phenomenons.
This project is a part of the museum’s effort to deepen its ‘vast curatorial knowledge’ by engaging grassroots experts to advise about ‘specific cultural niches’.
The roles will be paid a set rate per session, but that doesn’t mean full-time employment isn’t a possibility for some lucky Swiftie.
Bob Moores, the Toby jug superfan adviser, said: ‘I consider myself extremely fortunate to have been able to turn my love of collecting early English Toby jugs into my full-time job.
‘I acquired my first Toby jug some 25 years ago and since then have developed an absolute passion for these quintessentially English jugs and being allowed to work alongside the experts in this field at the V&A is a privilege and being paid to do so is an added bonus.’
These sentiments were echoed by Hannah Da Silva, the Gorpcore superfan adviser, who called her role with the V&A ‘truly an amazing experience’.
She said: ‘I am very lucky to have turned my interest in outdoors and technical clothing into my career.
‘Getting more women involved in the outdoors and to the forefront of the Gorpcore trend through my community GorpGirls has made it even more special.
‘Having this be recognised by the V&A was truly an amazing experience. It was so interesting to walk through the fashion exhibit and learn more about the history of women in sports and how the garments we wear have shifted over time.’
Swifties in Australia could have used some Gorpcore gear on Friday, as night one of the Sydney, Australia leg of Swift’s tour had to be
This new initiative by the museum is intended to engage with the 44% of Britons who, according to the V&A’s research, believe items in their personal collections are museum-worthy.
Even more notably, 27% of British collectors believe they are more knowledgeable about their chosen interest compared with experts. As you’ll probably agree if you’ve ever met a Taylor Swift superfan, when it comes to those truly devoted to Taylor Swift that number is likely even higher.
Dr Tristram Hunt, director of the museum, said: ‘These new advisory roles will help us celebrate and discover more about the enormous, and often surprising, creative diversity on offer at the V&A, as well as helping us to learn more about the design stories that are relevant to our audiences today.
‘Already appointed into a role include four of the UK’s leading grassroots experts who have many decades of collecting experience between them, spanning highly niche expertise across Toby jugs, Gorpcore, Lego and Pokemon.’
Potential applicants can now submit their applications through the V&A website.
