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{{short description|Canadian graphic designer}}
<!-- Image with inadequate rationale removed: [[Image:Canadian National Railway Logo.svg|thumb|The CN logo by Allan Fleming]] -->
{{About|the Canadian graphic designer|the Australian librarian |Allan Percy Fleming}}
{{Infobox Person
{{Infobox person
| name = Allan Robb Fleming
| image = Allan Fleming and CN Boxcar 1960.jpg
Line 6 ⟶ 7:
| caption =
| birth_date = {{birth date|1929|5|7}}
| birth_place = [[Toronto]], [[Ontario]], [[Canada]]
| death_date = {{Death date and age|1977|12|31|1929|5|7}}
| death_place = [[Toronto]], [[Ontario]], [[Canada]]
| education = [[Western Technical-Commercial School]]
| alma_mater =
| occupation = Graphic Designer
| residence =
| spouse = Nancy Barbara Chisholm
| children = Martha, Peter, Susannah
| parents = Isabella Osborne Fleming and Allan Stevenson Fleming
| religioncitizenship =
| citizenship = [[Canadian]]
}}
 
'''Allan Robb Fleming''' {{Post-nominals|country=CAN|RCA|size=100%}} (7 May 1929 &ndash; 31 December 1977) was a [[Canada|Canadian]] [[graphic designer]] best known for having created the [[:File:CN Railway logo.svg#Summary|Canadian National Railway logo]] logo, designing the best-selling 1967 Centennial book ''Canada: A Year of the Land/Canada, du temps qui passe'', and for revolutionizing the look of scholarly publishing in Canada, particularly at University of Toronto Press.
 
Born in [[Toronto|Toronto, Ontario]], he was Vicevice Presidentpresident and Directordirector of Creativecreative Servicesservices at the typographic firm Cooper and Beatty Ltd. when he designed the new CN logo in 1959. In 1962, he became art director for ''[[Maclean's]]'' magazine. From 1963 to 1968, he was director of creative services at [[McCann (company)#McCann Canada|MacLaren Advertising]]. From 1968 to 1976, he was the chief designer at the [[University of Toronto Press]]. He helped co-found Burns, Cooper, Donoahue, Fleming and Company.
 
He was a member of the first[[Royal FellowCanadian Academy of Arts]] and the [[SocietyAlliance Graphique Internationale]], a Fellow of Graphicthe Designers[[Ontario College of CanadaArt]], and athe memberfirst Fellow of the [[RoyalSociety Canadianof AcademyGraphic Designers of ArtsCanada]].
 
==Chronology==
===Early Years===
Allan Robb Fleming was the son of Isabella Osborne Fleming, a nurse, and Allan Stevenson Fleming, a clerk with [[Canadian National Railway]]s. They were both Scottish immigrants. Between 1937 and 1939 AF was hospitalized in Sick Children’s Hospital in Toronto because of an ear infection that required radical surgery and caused the loss of hearing in his left ear. He never forgot the trauma of being thought to be “sick” and as an adult wondered at the naming of the hospital in such a way.
 
===Early years===
In 1939 AF travelled to California with his mother as part of his recuperation. Back in Toronto, he attended Western Technical Collegiate from 1943 to 1945 in the commercial art stream. When he was 15, in 1944, his father died of bone cancer. From 1945 until 1947 AF was an illustrator in the mail order-advertising department of the T. Eaton Company, and then until 1951 worked as a layout artist with Art Associates Studio and with the advertising firm Aikin McCracken as an art director.
Allan Robb Fleming was the son of Isabella Osborne Fleming, a nurse, and Allan Stevenson Fleming, a clerk with [[Canadian National Railway]]s. They were both Scottish immigrants to Toronto.
 
Between 1937 and 1939 the young Allan was hospitalized in Sick Children's Hospital in Toronto because of an ear infection that required radical surgery and caused the permanent loss of hearing in his left ear. He never forgot the trauma. In 1939 Allan and his mother travelled to California as part of his recuperation; attending the Hollywood Premier of "The Wizard of Oz" formed an indelible impression.
In 1951 AF married Nancy Barbara Chisholm. AF worked at the advertising firm Art and Design Service with clients such as Ford, Helena Rubenstein, and Kaiser-Frazer until April 1953, at which time he became a freelance designer and went to England for two years. While in England he studied letterforms and the design of type and books, meeting such eminent English designers and design historians as Stanley Morison, Oliver Simon, Herbert Spencer, and Beatrice Warde.
 
Back in Toronto, he attended Western Technical Collegiate from 1943 to 1945 in the commercial art stream. When he was 15, in 1944, his father died of bone cancer. From 1945 until 1947 Fleming worked as an illustrator in the mail order-advertising department of the T. Eaton Company, and then until 1951 became a layout artist with Art Associates Studio and an art director with the advertising firm Aikin McCracken.
===Getting Established===
The Flemings returned to Toronto in May 1955, where AF did freelance work with Lewis Parker and taught part-time at the [[Ontario College of Art]]. He became head of typography at the college, a post he held until 1961. He also set up an independent graphic design studio in his home in November 1955. In 1956 he hired his student Ken Rodmell as his assistant. AF designed his first book in this period.
 
Fleming married Nancy Barbara Chisholm in 1951. Working at the advertising firm Art and Design Service, he was involved with clients such as Ford, Helena Rubenstein, and Kaiser-Frazer. In April 1953, the Flemings relocated to England for two years, where Fleming studied letterforms and the design of type and books, being mentored by such eminent English designers and design historians as Stanley Morison, Oliver Simon, Herbert Spencer, and Beatrice Warde.
In September 1957 AF joined Cooper & Beatty Typesetters as typographic director and designer. There he did a wide variety of designs for art galleries, companies such as the Hudson’s Bay Company, and a cover for ''Mayfair'' magazine. He also designed the “Type-o-file,” a box of type specimens arranged by family, which won an award at the Art Directors Club (New York) show. AF’s work was also exhibited at the Type Directors Club of New York.
 
===Getting established===
AF co-organized various exhibitions at C&B, a book by James Reaney for Macmillan (''A Suit of Nettles''), the American Institute of Graphic Arts annual, ''Design and Printing for Commerce/50 Advertisements of the Year'' (1958), and various invitations, covers, and advertisements. In 1958 he also attended The Silvermine Conference: The Art and
[[File:Afleming.jpg|thumb|Fleming in 1959]]
Science of Typography: An International Seminar of Typographic Design, in Norwalk, Connecticut, won design awards in Toronto, Montreal, and New York, and delivered the Rous Lecture on Typography at the Ontario College of Art on legibility. The Flemings’ first daughter, Martha, was born in October 1958.
When the Flemings returned to Toronto in May 1955, Allan set up as a freelance designer with illustrator Lewis Parker and taught part-time at the [[Ontario College of Art]]. He became head of typography at the college, a post he held until 1961. He also set up an independent graphic design studio in his home in November 1955, hiring his then student, Ken Rodmell, as his assistant a year later. It was in this period that Fleming designed his first book.
 
In September 1957 Fleming joined Cooper & Beatty Typesetters as typographic director and designer. The range and flair of the work he effected for C&B garnered attention internationally, and brought in a host of awards from the New York Art Directors Club, the Type Directors Club of New York, and the AIGA among others. As well as paying work for companies such as General Motors, London Life, the Hudson's Bay Company, and others, Fleming produced witty and effective advertising ephemera for C&B itself. He also designed the "Type-o-file," an innovative pick-and-mix box of type specimens arranged by family.
===CN Logo===
[[File:CN Railway logo.svg|right|thumb|250px|Canadian National Railway logo, 1959]]
 
Fleming also co-organized (with Franklyn Smith) a number of significant exhibitions of internationally acclaimed designers such as [[Karl Gerstner]], Hermann Zapf and Saul Bass at C&B's headquarters in Toronto. In 1958 he attended the highly influential Silvermine Conference ("The Art and Science of Typography: An International Seminar of Typographic Design") in Norwalk, Connecticut, delivering that year the Rous Lecture on Typography at the Ontario College of Art, on the subject of legibility. The Flemings' first daughter, Martha, was born in October 1958.
In 1959 the New York industrial design firm James Valkus commissioned AF to design a new logo for Canadian National Railways. The resulting logo, launched in 1960, is still in use today. In this same year AF designed letterhead for Alan Jarvis Associates, the catalogue for the Stratford Festival Art Exhibition, posters for the Toronto Film Society, a photo-documentary fundraising booklet for the United Church of Canada, and “Printing and Social Change” by Marshall McLuhan, which was published in ''Printing Progress: A Mid-Century Report'' by the International Association of Printing House Craftsmen. In this year AF also established his first private press, Tortoise Press, whose first book was ''Eight Poems'', by Richard Outram. A feature article on AF by Robert Fulford was published in ''Canadian Art''.
 
===CN logo===
Besides launching the CN symbol in 1960, AF redesigned the Bank of Nova Scotia logo, and worked on projects for Dow Chemical Company, Salada Foods, Jordan Wines, Vickers and Benson, Eaton’s, and Cooper & Beatty. He also attended various art exhibitions and meetings in the United States and designed more books, such as the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts’ ''Paul-Emile Borduas'' and the National Gallery of Canada’s ''Canadian Painters in Watercolour and Folk Painters of the Canadian West''. Peter Fleming, Nancy and Allan’s only son, was born in August.
[[File:Afleming cn.jpg|thumb|Allan Fleming at the launch of the CN logo, 1960]]
In 1959 the New York industrial design firm James Valkus commissioned Fleming to create a new logo for Canadian National Railways as a key part of Valkus' company-wide corporate redesign programme. The resulting logo, launched in 1960, is still in use today and acclaimed as one of the top 50 corporate logos of all time by design historian Alice Rawsthorn [Report on Business, October 2000]. In this same year he designed an innovative and gritty fundraising brochure in an unusual photo-documentary style for the United Church of Canada, as well as "Printing and Social Change" by Marshall McLuhan, which was published in ''Printing Progress: A Mid-Century Report'' by the International Association of Printing House Craftsmen. Fleming also established his first private press that year, the Tortoise Press, whose first book was ''Eight Poems'', by Richard Outram.
 
Besides launching the CN symbol in 1960, Fleming redesigned the Bank of Nova Scotia logo, and worked on projects for Dow Chemical Company, Salada Foods, Jordan Wines, Vickers and Benson, Eaton's, and of course Cooper & Beatty. He began designing more books, such as the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts' ''Paul-Emile Borduas'' and the National Gallery of ''Canada's Canadian Painters in Watercolour and Folk Painters of the Canadian West''. Peter Fleming, Nancy and Allan's only son, was born in August.
From late June to early September 1960 AF travelled to the UK and Europe on a Canada Council for the Arts grant. There he met among others Jan Tschichold, Karl Gerstner, and Gunter Gerhard Lange of the Berthold type-foundry. He exhibited work at Monotype House Gallery in London at the invitation of Beatrice Warde, gave an address on North American graphic design, and persuaded Ken Rodmell, then living in London, to return to Toronto to work at Cooper & Beatty. Jim Donoahue by then also worked in the creative department at C&B. AF became vice-president and typographic director in charge of creative services at C&B in 1961 and in that position did a variety of design jobs.
 
From late June to early September 1960 Fleming travelled to the UK and Europe on a Canada Council for the Arts grant, meeting among others Jan Tschichold, Karl Gerstner, and Gunter Gerhard Lange of the Berthold type-foundry. He exhibited work at Monotype House Gallery in London at the invitation of Beatrice Warde, gave an address on North American graphic design, and persuaded Ken Rodmell, then living in London, to return to Toronto to work for him at Cooper & Beatty and join Jim Donoahue who by then also worked in the creative department at C&B. In 1961, Fleming became vice-president and typographic director in charge of creative services at C&B.
===Other Projects===
[[Image:OHydro-logo.png|right|thumb|200px|Ontario Hydro logo, 1962]]
 
===Maclean's magazine, MacLaren advertising, Ontario Hydro===
1962 was another busy year for AF. He designed a logo for the Montreal Trust Company; letterhead for Hawker Siddeley Canada; graphics and the logo for Toronto’s Malton Airport; all signage, monumental lettering, and the foundation stone for Massey College at the University of Toronto; annual reports and invitations; and attended graphic conferences and exhibited work. In November 1962 AF left C&B in order to become art director at ''Maclean’s'' magazine. After a tumultuous nine months there, during which AF led the move to radically alter the look of the magazine, AF was hired as executive art director at MacLaren Advertising Company Ltd. Its clients included General Electric, General Motors, Hockey Night in Canada, Imperial Oil, and Lever Brothers. That same year AF was commissioned to design a new logo for Ontario Hydro, as well as the crest, letterhead, and other related materials for the new Trent University in Peterborough, Ontario. Among many other projects as well, AF submitted an unsuccessful design for a new Canadian flag. In April 1963, Allan and Nancy’s third child, Susannah, was born.
[[File:Afleming macleans.png|thumb|[[Maclean's Magazine]] cover by Fleming, 3 November 1962]]
1962 was another busy year for Fleming. He designed a logo for the Montreal Trust Company; letterhead for Hawker Siddeley Canada; graphics and the logo for Toronto's Malton Airport (architect John B. Parkin); all signage, monumental lettering, and the foundation stone for Massey College at the University of Toronto (architect Ron Thom); annual reports and invitations; and much more. But in November 1962, he left C&B in order to become art director at ''Maclean's'' magazine. After a tumultuous nine months there, during which Fleming radically redesigned the look of the magazine, he was hired as executive art director at MacLaren Advertising Company Ltd. Its clients included General Electric, General Motors, Hockey Night in Canada, Imperial Oil, and Lever Brothers. That same year Fleming was commissioned to design a new logo for Ontario Hydro (launched 1965), as well as the crest, letterhead, and other related materials for the new Trent University in Peterborough, Ontario (architect Ron Thom). In April 1963, Allan and Nancy's third child, Susannah, was born.
 
AFFleming becamewas promoted in 1965 to vice-president and associate general manager, creative department, at MacLaren in 1965. That year the Ontario Hydro logo was launched also, and AF and Ralph Tibbles designed a new logo for the Toronto Symphony OrchestraAdvertising. AFFleming was involved that year in Liberal Party campaign materials – an election the Liberals won. theAlthough election.he Inhas 1966never AFreceived becameany acredit MacLaren’sfor director;it, byit's thenvery likely that he had sixty-threea staffhand in creativeguiding services.the Thatfinal yeardesign Lorraine Monkexecution of the NationalCanadian Filmflag. Board,Although Stillit's Photography Division, commissioned AFattributed to design the NFB Centennial bookothers, ''Canada:it Abears Yearmany of thehis Land/Canada,typical dudesign tempsstylings quiand passe''.hallmarks Amongand otherthat accomplishments,he inwas thishired yearby seventhe offederal AF’sgovernment projectsis wereindicated chosenin forhis exhibitionarchives, inaccording ''Typomondusto 20'',his thedaughter. firstIt internationalhas juriedstood exhibitionas one of typographicthe design,best whichnational wasflag helddesigns inever Torontodone.
 
In 1966 Fleming became a MacLaren's director; by then he was responsible for the work of sixty-three staff in creative services. Among other accomplishments that year, seven of Fleming's projects were chosen for exhibition in ''Typomundus 20'', the first international juried exhibition of typographic design, which was held in Toronto.
1967 saw AF continue to do a wide variety of design projects, including a film for the Hudson’s Bay Company on the occasion of its 300th birthday and a logo and print materials for Dooley’s Restaurant in Toronto. That year AF was awarded the Centennial Medal of Canada and also a gold medal for book design at Graphica ’67 for ''Canada: A Year of the Land''.
 
[[File:Afleming canadaayearoftheland.jpg|thumb|''Canada: A Year of the Land'', 1967]]
===UTP Years===
In 1968 the first hint of heart trouble occurred. AF was unwell that spring, and left MacLaren Advertising in May, though he continued to be on the board of directors and served as a creative consultant. That month he shifted gears to become chief of design at the University of Toronto Press, an association he maintained until his death in 1977. UTP then was the fourth largest university press in North America, publishing an average of eighty to a hundred books a year.
 
Lorraine Monk of the National Film Board, Still Photography Division, commissioned Fleming to design the sumptuous NFB Centennial book, ''Canada: A Year of the Land/Canada, du temps qui passe'', for which he was awarded the Centennial Medal of Canada and a gold medal for book design at Graphica '67'.
While revolutionizing the look of scholarly books at UTP, AF also continued to do a wide variety of other design jobs for the Canada Council, Galanty Productions, Gramercy Holding Ltd, Jordan Wines, Philip and Noah Torno, the Hudson’s Bay Company, and other MacLaren clients. With Ernie Herzig AF set up another small press, Martlet Press, which did a number of books with the NFB and Lorraine Monk as well as others. A UTP Christmas keepsake, ''The Alphabet Book'', by Kettle Point School and Anne and Alex Wyse, won an AIGA award as one of its fifty books of the year. The Martlet Press’s own ''John Fillion: Thoughts About My Sculpture'' also won an AIGA award.
 
===TheUniversity Lastof DecadeToronto Press===
In 1968 the first hint of heart trouble occurred. Fleming was unwell that spring, and left MacLaren Advertising in May, though he continued to be on the board of directors and served as a creative consultant. That month he shifted gears to become chief of design at the University of Toronto Press (UTP), a post that was created for him, and an association he maintained until his death in 1977. UTP was then the fourth largest university press in North America, publishing an average of eighty to a hundred books a year.
In 1969 AF designed a symbol and various publications for the Ontario Science Centre, a symbol for the Metropolitan Toronto Separate School Board, the NE Thing Company logo, and a style guide for Canada Post. He also was involved in various exhibitions, such as one at the Art Gallery of Ontario titled ''Art at the Service of Intention: Graphic Designers at Work'', and appeared on Robert Fulford’s TV program, On Books. UTP’s publications, ''The Economic Atlas of Ontario'' and ''Rural Ontario'', both won AIGA awards in this year. The following year, AF was appointed to the National Design Council. Also in 1970, he designed a logo for the Metropolitan Educational Television Authority and one for Gray Coach Lines. Besides being involved in various exhibitions, a TV program about letterforms and typography, and posters for the “Stop the Spadina Expressway” movement, AF’s Martlet Press published ''Twenty-Eight Drawings by [[Barbara Howard (artist)|Barbara Howard]]''. Howard was a close friend of AF’s and the wife of [[Richard Outram]]. In this year another UTP book, ''Goethe’s Faust'', translated by the renowned literary scholar and painter Barker Fairley and illustrated by one of AF’s protégés, Randy Jones, won yet another AIGA award, and ''The Economic Atlas of Ontario'' won the World’s Most Beautiful Book prize at the Leipzig International Exhibition of Book Arts.
 
While revolutionizing the look of scholarly books at UTP, Fleming also continued to do a wide variety of other design jobs for the Canada Council, Galanty Productions, Gramercy Holding Ltd, Jordan Wines, Philip and Noah Torno, the Hudson's Bay Company, and other MacLaren Advertising clients. With master printer Ernie Herzig, he set up another small press, Martlet Press, which produced among others high-quality photography books with the National Film Board. A UTP Christmas keepsake, ''The Alphabet Book'', by Kettle Point School and Anne and Alex Wyse, won an AIGA '50 Books of the Year'. The Martlet Press's own ''John Fillion: Thoughts About My Sculpture'' also won an AIGA award.
1971 saw the design by AF of stationery and catalogues for Monk Bretton Books, an antiquarian book dealer specializing in fine press books. With Laurie Lewis, also a designer at UTP, AF designed the United Church of Canada’s new ''Hymnal''. A notable UTP book this year was ''Sculpture Inuit'', done for the Canadian Eskimo Arts Council. In June 1971 AF had a heart attack while in Halifax and then a few months later a paralyzing stroke, forcing him to go on disability leave from UTP. He didn’t stop working, doing such things as stamps for Canada Post with the artist Alma Duncan, first-day covers for the Paul Kane and BC centennial stamps, a Christmas card for UNICEF, and writing and hosting a program for CBC TV entitled “Calligraphy: My Love Affair with the Alphabet.” ''Quill & Quire'', the monthly Canadian book trade magazine, did a feature on AF, and he also made various speeches. By 1972 AF had returned to UTP, but he suffered another heart attack early in the year, and was off work until April.
 
===Last decade===
In 1973 AF associated with Burton Kramer Associates Ltd and during this association Burton Kramer designed the new visual identity for the CBC and for Reed Paper. That year AF also incorporated as Allan R. Fleming Graphic Design Consultants. In August he experienced a series of angina attacks, which forced him to cut back on various activities. A highlight of the year was being made a fellow of the Ontario College of Art, the first year this honour had been given. Another NFB book, ''Canada'', won the Leipzig World’s Most Beautiful Book prize.
In 1969 Fleming designed both a symbol and the launch publications for the new [[Ontario Science Centre]], a symbol for the [[Toronto Catholic District School Board|Metropolitan Separate School Board]] (now today as the Toronto Catholic District School Board), the NE Thing Company logo, and a style guide for Canada Post that set the bar for the next 20 years. As a public educationalist, he was also a driving force behind such exhibitions as ''Art at the Service of Intention: Graphic Designers at Work'' (Art Gallery of Ontario), and appeared on Robert Fulford's TV program, 'On Books'. Two of UTP's publications designed by Fleming -- ''The Economic Atlas of Ontario'' and ''Rural Ontario''—won AIGA awards in 1969. The following year, Fleming designed a logo for the Metropolitan Educational Television Authority and one for Gray Coach Lines, and was appointed to the National Design Council. Fleming also found time for civic duty, designing posters for the "Stop the Spadina Expressway" movement spearheaded by Jane Jacobs, Marshall McLuhan and William Kilbourn. Also in 1971, another UTP book, ''Goethe's Faust'', translated by the renowned literary scholar and painter Barker Fairley and illustrated by one of Fleming's protégés, Randy Jones, won yet another AIGA award, and ''The Economic Atlas of Ontario'' won the World's Most Beautiful Book prize at the Leipzig International Exhibition of Book Arts. 1971 saw Fleming designing the United Church of Canada's new ''Hymnal'', in tandem with designer and UTP colleague Laurie Lewis. A notable UTP book that year was ''Sculpture Inuit'', done for the Canadian Eskimo Arts Council. Closer to home, Fleming's Martlet Press published ''Twenty-Eight Drawings by Barbara Howard'': Howard was a close family friend, the wife of poet Richard Outram. And, in exchange for books for his considerable collection, Fleming also began designing stationery and catalogues for Monk Bretton Books, an antiquarian book dealer specializing in fine press books.
 
In June 1971 Fleming had a heart attack while in Halifax and then a few months later a paralyzing stroke, forcing him to go on disability leave from UTP. He didn't stop working, designing philatelic materials for Canada Post such as a stamp with the artist Alma Duncan, first-day covers for the Paul Kane and British Columbia centennial stamps, and writing and hosting a program for CBC TV entitled "Calligraphy: My Love Affair with the Alphabet." ''Quill & Quire'', the monthly Canadian book trade magazine, ran a feature on AF, and he continued to make regular contributions to professional gatherings. By 1972 Fleming had returned to UTP, but not for long: he suffered another debilitating heart attack early in the year.
As of January 1974 AF became a director for the industrial design firm Kuypers Adamson Norton Ltd. He also designed labels for Chateau Cartier Wines and launched the CBC symbol with Burton Kramer. St Thomas’s Anglican Church in Toronto commissioned AF to design a logo and related items for its centennial, and AF also did various commissions for Canada Post. AF’s template for ''The Collected Works of Erasmus'', designed in 1974, is still used by UTP for books in this ongoing series. Another AIGA award went to another UTP book, Clarence Tracy’s ''The Rape Observ’d''.
 
In 1973, Fleming joined Burton Kramer Associates as one of two principals, alongside Kramer. Among other projects during that period, the firm developed the new visual identity for the CBC and for Reed Paper. Concurrently, he also incorporated as Allan R. Fleming Graphic Design Consultants, but in August he experienced further heart problems which forced him to cut back on various activities. A highlight of the year was being made a fellow of the Ontario College of Art, the first year this honour had been given, alongside the painter A.Y. Jackson. Another NFB book, "Canada", won the Leipzig World's Most Beautiful Book prize.
In 1975 AF designed the sesquicentennial symbol for the University of Toronto, as well as stamps commemorating the Olympics and the sculptures of R. Tait MacKenzie. ''The Rape Observ’d'' won best of show in the Look of Books competition and was also exhibited at the Type Directors Club in New York.
 
As of January 1974 Fleming became a director of the industrial design firm Kuypers Adamson Norton Ltd. and launched the CBC symbol with Burton Kramer. St Thomas's Anglican Church in Toronto commissioned him to design a logo for its centennial, and continued to design philatelic materials for Canada Post. His work with UTP that year included the template for ''The Collected Works of Erasmus'', which is still used by UTP for this monumental editorial project, and another AIGA award-winner, Clarence Tracy's ''The Rape Observ'd''.
AF resigned from Burton Kramer Associates Ltd in March of 1976 and joined Burns Cooper Donaohue and Fleming the following month, where among other things he designed packets for MacKenzie Seeds, the Torstar logo, and an album cover for Sylvia Tyson. He redesigned ''The Financial Post'', including the logo. And in March he also left his wife and family and set up house with an editor from UTP, Prudence Tracy. Another highlight of this year was the solo exhibition of AF’s work curated by Alvin Balkind at the Vancouver Art Gallery. The exhibition also travelled to the Alberta College of Art; coming back to Toronto from the opening there, AF suffered a stroke.
 
He resigned from Burton Kramer Associates Ltd in March 1976, joining Burns Cooper Donaohue and Fleming the following month. The range of his work from that office covered his complete editorial redesign for Canada's newspaper The Financial Post, a logo for media company Torstar, packaging design for MacKenzie Seeds and an award-winning album cover for singer-songwriter Sylvia Tyson.
Although AF continued to give some lectures and design books such as ''Photography for the Joy of It'' for Van Nostrand Reinhold, and as well was commissioned with Ken Rodmell by that publisher to write three textbooks on graphic design, his health was deteriorating, and in late December he had a cardiopulmonary collapse, from which he died on 31 December.
 
It was a tumultuous year: in March he also left his wife and family and set up house with an editor from UTP, Prudence Tracy. A solo exhibition of Fleming's work curated by Alvin Balkind opened at the Vancouver Art Gallery; the exhibition also travelled to the Alberta College of Art in Calgary, and coming back to Toronto from the opening there, Fleming suffered a stroke. In late December Fleming had a cardiopulmonary collapse, from which he died on 31 December.
==Allan's Influence==
The information above outlines the trajectory of Allan Fleming’s career. Although some hint of his personality and energy come through simply by the sheer quantity and variety of his undertakings, a simple chronology can’t adequately suggest what Brian Donnelly in issue 93 of ''The Devil’s Artisan'' calls “his persuasive presentation style and genuine brilliance with words, ” nor can it convey the nurturing and inclusive style that made AF an inspiring colleague and friend and one from whom all who were interested could learn. He not only revolutionized design at UTP, for example; he also revolutionized the relationship between editors, designers, and production and marketing employees, inspiring all with his camaraderie and brilliant innovation. His early death was a tragedy not only for his family and friends but for generations of people who didn’t have the benefit of encountering Allan Robb Fleming.
 
==Influence and legacy==
==References==
This outlined trajectory of Allan Fleming's career gives a sense of his personality and energy if only by demonstrating the sheer quantity and variety of his undertakings, but a simple chronology can't adequately suggest what Brian Donnelly in issue 63 of ''The Devil's Artisan'' calls "his persuasive presentation style and genuine brilliance with words." Nor can it convey the attentive and inclusive style that made Fleming such an inspiring colleague and friend: one from whom all who were interested could learn. He was an indefatigable mentor, teacher and public champion of design in all aspects of Canadian cultural life. He revolutionized more than the design department at UTP; he also revolutionized the relationship between editors, designers, and production and marketing employees, inspiring all with his camaraderie and brilliant innovation. This ability to inspire and galvanise disparate professionals was also a hallmark of his work in advertising and in typographic design, when those professions were not the flat hierarchies they have since become. His early death was a great loss to family and friends, but his work as a designer, collaborator and teacher continues to reverberate through the Canadian design world and beyond.
* {{cite web|url=http://national.gallery.ca/english/library/biblio/ngc011.html|title=A.R. Fleming Collection|work=[[National Gallery of Canada]]}}
* {{cite web|url=http://www.cn.ca/companyinfo/history/logo1960.shtml|title=CN Logo 1960|work=[[Canadian National Railway]]}}
* {{cite news|title=Allan Fleming Graphic designer famous for CN's striking logo|publisher=The Globe and Mail|date=1978-01-03}}
* {{cite news|title=''Allan Fleming’s Many Worlds'', edited by Martha Fleming|publisher=''Devil’s Artisan: A Journal of the Printing Arts'' 62|date=2008}}
* {{cite news|title=''In Allan Fleming’s Archive'', edited by Martha Fleming|publisher=''Devil’s Artisan: A Journal of the Printing Arts'' 63|date=2008}}
 
==CollectionsNotable logos==
[http://archivesfa.library.yorku.ca/fonds/ON00370-f0000529.htm Allan Fleming Papers, Clara Thomas Archives and Special Collections, York University Libraries, Toronto, Ontario]
 
{{Gallery
[http://pi.library.yorku.ca/dspace/handle/10315/1478/browse?value=Allan+Robb+Fleming+Digitization+Project&type=series Allan Fleming Collection of Digitized Images, Clara Thomas Archives and Special Collections, York University Libraries, Toronto, Ontario]
| File:CN Railway logo.svg
| [[Canadian National Railway]], 1959
| File:Ontario Hydro logo.svg
| [[Ontario Hydro]], 1962
|
| [[Trent University]], 1964
| File:National Design Council logo.svg
| National Design Council of the Canadian Department of Industry (Design Canada), 1965
| File:Centre for Medieval Studies device.svg
| [[Centre for Medieval Studies, Toronto]], 1968–76
| File:Metropolitan Separate School Board logo.svg
| [[Metropolitan Separate School Board]], 1969
| File:Ontario Science Centre Logo.svg
| [[Ontario Science Centre]], 1969
| File:Gray Coach logo.svg
| [[Gray Coach Lines]], 1970
| File:St Thomas's Church, Huron Street logo.svg
| [[St. Thomas's Anglican Church (Toronto)]], 1974
}}
 
==References==
[http://www.library.utoronto.ca/fisher/collections/findaids/C&B.pdf Cooper & Beatty Fonds (MS297), Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library, University of Toronto]
* {{cite web|url=http://national.gallery.ca/english/library/biblio/ngc011.html|title=A.R. Fleming Collection|work=[[National Gallery of Canada]]}}
* {{cite web|url=https://www.cn.ca/en/stories/20170609-allan-fleming|title=A closer look at the logo that defines CN|work=[[Canadian National Railway]]}}
* {{cite news|title=Allan Fleming Graphic designer famous for CN's striking logo|newspaper=The Globe and Mail|date=1978-01-03}}
* {{cite news|title=''Allan Fleming's Many Worlds'', edited by Martha Fleming|publisher=Devil's Artisan: A Journal of the Printing Arts 62|year=2008}}
* {{cite news|title=''In Allan Fleming's Archive'', edited by Martha Fleming|publisher=Devil's Artisan: A Journal of the Printing Arts 63|year=2008}}
* http://www.eyemagazine.com/feature/article/allan-fleming-the-man-who-branded-a-nation
 
==External links (collections)==
[http://ao.minisisinc.com/scripts/mwimain.dll/144/ARCH_DESC_FACT/FACTSDESC/REFD+F+4467?SESSIONSEARCH MacLaren Advertising Fonds (R4467), Archives of Ontario]
* [http://archivesfa.library.yorku.ca/fonds/ON00370-f0000529.htm Allan Fleming Papers, Clara Thomas Archives and Special Collections, York University Libraries, Toronto, Ontario]
* [https://digital.library.yorku.ca/yul-f0529/allan-robb-fleming Allan Fleming Collection of Digitized Images, Clara Thomas Archives and Special Collections, York University Libraries, Toronto, Ontario]
* [http://www.library.utoronto.ca/fisher/collections/findaids/C&B.pdf Cooper & Beatty Fonds (MS297), Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library, University of Toronto]
* [http://ao.minisisinc.com/scripts/mwimain.dll/144/ARCH_DESC_FACT/FACTSDESC/REFD+F+4467?SESSIONSEARCH MacLaren Advertising Fonds (R4467), Archives of Ontario]
* [http://www.ccca.ca/designers/designer_info.html?languagePref=en&link_id=5228&designer=Allan+Fleming CCCA]
*[https://www.gallery.ca/library/ngc011.html A.R. Fleming Collection] at the [[National Gallery of Canada]], Ottawa, Ontario
 
{{Authority control}}
[http://www.ccca.ca/designers/designer_info.html?languagePref=en&link_id=5228&designer=Allan+Fleming CCCA]
 
{{Persondata <!-- Metadata: see [[Wikipedia:Persondata]]. -->
| NAME = Fleming, Allan
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES =
| SHORT DESCRIPTION =
| DATE OF BIRTH = 7 May 1929
| PLACE OF BIRTH = [[Toronto]], [[Ontario]], [[Canada]]
| DATE OF DEATH = 31 December 1977
| PLACE OF DEATH = [[Toronto]], [[Ontario]], [[Canada]]
}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fleming, Allan}}
[[Category:1929 births]]
[[Category:1977 deaths]]
[[Category:Canadian graphic designers]]
[[Category:Logo designers]]
[[Category:Members of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts]]
[[Category:Artists from Toronto]]