MAC Cosmetics has joined forces with American fashion designer and ‘Protect the Dolls’ creator Connor Ives for its annual Viva Glam campaign. The exclusive collaboration will feature a reinvention of Ives’s original ‘Protect the Dolls‘ T-shirt, alongside a reimagined take on the iconic Viva Planet Lipstick shade.
One hundred per cent of the collection’s selling price will be donated to organisations advancing trans equality, including Mermaids, which provides helplines, family support and advocacy for transgender, non-binary and gender-diverse young people in the UK, and The Trevor Project, which delivers 24/7 crisis services for LGBTQ+ youth while expanding its peer support, education and advocacy work in the US.
‘I was a huge admirer of Connor’s work, especially Protect the Dolls,’ MAC global creative director Nicola Formichetti tells ELLE UK ahead of the collaboration’s launch. ‘I thought: he’s doing something powerful over there, and we’re doing something meaningful with Viva Glam here. Why not join forces and create something even bigger?’
Courtesy of MAC Cosmetics
The campaign feels incredibly close to Ives’s heart, as he recounts his earliest memories of the Viva Glam mission and reflects on how his personal involvement in the initiative came about.
‘I grew up as a Little Monster. I really worshipped the work Nicola did,’ he says. ‘It shaped me at a time when this whole industry felt very far away, almost like Oz. It was surreal and exciting to be presented with an opportunity to work with a company like MAC — something so big and global, yet still aligned with our brand values. That’s something that became clearer through the Protect the Dolls moment.’
Courtesy of MAC Cosmetics
He describes Viva Glam as an aesthetic in its own right; when it came to the pair’s inspiration for the range, Ives says the references were all there for the taking.
‘I grew up with those campaigns — RuPaul, Lady Gaga — these huge superstars tied to meaningful charity moments,’ he says. ‘It felt natural to build on that and create something that continues those touchpoints.’
To carry the message forward, the Protect the Dolls VIVA GLAM campaign has enlisted a cast of trailblazing ‘dolls’: Dominique Jackson, Josephine DuPont, Ivy Stewart and Green Kim.
Courtesy of MAC Cosmetics
‘What was powerful about the original ‘Protect the Dolls’ moment was how grassroots it felt; getting the T-shirt onto the right people, who actually paid for it,’ Ives says. ‘There were no deals like ‘wear this at Coachella.’ It was important that people engaged with it genuinely, and donated alongside it.’
For him, this campaign is about carrying that message forward, and amplifying it. ‘MAC has been incredible in giving us the freedom to do that on our own terms.’
The MAC Silky Matte VIVA GLAM x Conner Ives ‘Protect the Dolls’ Lipstick and MAC VIVA GLAM x Conner Ives ‘Protect the Dolls’ Shirt will be available online in the UK and US on 29th March 2026 at 11AM GMT, with limited quantities available at select MAC locations across the UK.
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