Viva M.A.C : AIDS, fashion, and the philanthropic practices of M{u2022}A{u2022}C Cosmetics

This is the first cultural history of M·A·C Cosmetics and charts the originally Canadian company’s philanthropy around HIV/AIDS awareness and fundraising during the revitalization of the Toronto fashion industry, the rise of the AIDS epidemic in North America, and the commodification of social causes during the 1980s and 1990s. "This is the first cultural history of the originally Canadian company M·A·C Cosmetics, charting the evolution of M·A·C{u2019}s unusual corporate philanthropy around HIV/AIDS awareness. The book situates M·A·C{u2019}s remarkable corporate philanthropy within three cultural and social phenomena of the 1980s and 1990s: the revitalization of the Toronto fashion industry, the evolution of the AIDS epidemic in North America, and the increasing commodification of social causes. Describing M·A·C{u2019}s philanthropic work through its VIVA GLAM fundraising lipstick, this book delves into the history of its charity, the M·A·C AIDS Fund, which featured drag performer RuPaul and singer k.d. lang in its first advertising campaigns. M·A·C defied the stigma associated with AIDS that alarmed many other corporations, and instead engaged in AIDS advocacy while maintaining its creative and fashionable authority. Framed by Pierre Bourdieu{u2019}s field theory and Judith Butler{u2019}s gender theory, and engaging with archives, contemporaneous media communications, and interviews with key fashion figures, the book explains how M·A·C{u2019}s activities around AIDS philanthropy were based in specific cultural practices, rather than being part of a strategic marketing plan. Ultimately, M·A·C{u2019}s unusual style of corporate social responsibility originated and functioned within the same field of cultural production in which the AIDS crisis was directly experienced: fashion. As such, M·A·C{u2019}s activities can be viewed as markedly different from other cases of corporate philanthropy or cause marketing."-- Provided by publisher

The first cultural history of the iconic brand M·A·C Cosmetics, VIVA M·A·C charts the evolution of M·A·C’s revolutionary corporate philanthropy around HIV/AIDS awareness. Drawing upon exclusive interviews with M·A·C co-founder Frank Toskan, key journalists, and fashion insiders, Andrea Benoit tells the fascinating story of how M·A·C's unique style of corporate social responsibility emerged from specific cultural practices, rather than being part of a strategic marketing plan.

Benoit delves into the history of the M·A·C AIDS Fund and its signature VIVA GLAM fundraising lipstick, which featured drag performer RuPaul and singer k.d. lang in its first advertising campaigns. This lively chronicle reveals how M·A·C managed to not only defy the stigma associated with AIDS that alarmed many other corporations, but to engage in highly successful AIDS advocacy while maintaining its creative and fashionable authority.

The first cultural history of the iconic brand M·A·C Cosmetics, VIVA M·A·C charts the evolution of M·A·C's revolutionary corporate philanthropy around HIV/AIDS awareness. Drawing upon exclusive interviews with M·A·C co-founder Frank Toskan, key journalists, and fashion insiders, Andrea Benoit tells the fascinating story of how M·A·C's unique style of corporate social responsibility emerged from specific cultural practices, rather than being part of a strategic marketing plan. Benoit delves into the history of the M·A·C AIDS Fund and its signature VIVA GLAM fundraising lipstick, which featured drag performer RuPaul and singer k.d. lang in its first advertising campaigns. This lively chronicle reveals how M·A·C managed to not only defy the stigma associated with AIDS that alarmed many other corporations, but to engage in highly successful AIDS advocacy while maintaining its creative and fashionable authority.