Bruce Mau Design Rebrands the McMichael Canadian Art Collection
Design studio Bruce Mau Design (BMD) has collaborated with the McMichael Canadian Art Collection to undertake a significant rebranding and website overhaul, with the goal of redefining the institution as a contemporary and essential hub for art and culture in Canada.
Opened in 1966 and situated in Kleinburg, Ontario, the publicly-funded institution is recognised as the only museum in the nation dedicated solely to Canadian art.
Beyond hosting touring exhibitions, it boasts a permanent collection of over 7,000 pieces created by both historical and contemporary Canadian artists, including Indigenous artists and those from various diasporic communities that make up Canada.
BMD’s refreshed identity – featuring, among other elements, a redesigned heritage logo and a contemporary typographic suite – is characterised as harmonising "history with modernity".
"We helped the McMichael articulate a big brand idea that positions them in a new way while honouring their roots. We redrew an older, handcrafted logo to preserve its warmth and paired it with a clean sans serif typeface from Canadian foundries, balanced, approachable, and timeless. The result invites discovery and dialogue across eras and cultures," explains BMD chief creative officer, Laura Stein.
"Our exhibitions highlight rising contemporary artists, centuries of Indigenous artistic practice, and introduce new scholarship that redefines what ‘Canadian art’ means now. For some time, public perception hadn’t fully kept pace with this evolution," further comments McMichael's executive director and chief curator, Sarah Milroy.
Adding: "This rebrand represents a visual and verbal rearticulation of who we are now: a vibrant, inquisitive, welcoming institution with a clarity of voice and a bold commitment to championing Canadian art in all its forms."
