HANS KLEEFELD (1929-2016)

Hans Kleefeld shaped the visual style of corporate Canada through logos and identities that have become part of everyday life. As a longtime faculty member at the Ontario College of Art (OCA, now OCAD University), he also inspired emerging designers with a teaching philosophy rooted in clarity, simplicity and timeless design principles.

After immigrating to Canada in 1952 from Germany, he established himself as one of the country's leading graphic designers, working with prominent studios before joining Stewart & Morrison Ltd. during the formative years of Canadian corporate identity design.

In 1963, Trans-Canada Air Lines (TCA) commissioned Stewart & Morrison to create a new logo for the company ahead of its name change to Air Canada. Kleefeld worked under instructions to include a maple leaf emblem in the final design. He created a stylized logo incorporating a circle that begins at the leaf’s stem. He intended the logo to represent a circular journey around the globe, with Canada at its centre.¹ The company’s current logo retains the core elements of Kleefeld’s design, with a minor refresh introduced in 1994. 

In 1966, Kleefeld designed a new logo for the Bank of Montreal (BMO). The 1966 symbol was intended to mark the bank’s 150th anniversary as well as Canada’s centennial. Kleefeld combined the letters “B” and “M” into an abstract form that recalled a folded paper bill and a gold bar. The logo, dubbed the “M-Bar,” complemented the bank's new visual identity, rendered in "First Bank Blue," a shade that became the bank's official colour. 

In 1969, Kleefeld drew on this experience to create the modernized TD Bank logo, which remains in use today. ²

Kleefeld taught typography, corporate identity, package design and systems graphics at the OCA for approximately 40 years before continuing his teaching career at Sheridan College. ³

Learn more about Hans Kleefeld

¹ Canada Modern

² Grokipedia, Hans Kleefeld

³ Toronto Star, Obituary, Hans Kleefeld, 2016

Image Credit: Air Canada logo designed by Hans Kleefeld.