Glenn Fretz: Graphic Design for the Mennonite Community

“Without relationships, design is basically a science. It’s my job to bring some humanity into it.” - Glenn Fretz

Logos surround us. How often do we think about the values they convey? This exhibit tells and shows the story of Glenn Fretz’s fifty-year career as a graphic designer and consultant, focusing on his work with Mennonite and non-profit organizations. It also gives a nod to his most ubiquitous work – his redesign of the Trillium symbol for the government of Ontario.

Thoughtfully designed by Fretz himself, the exhibit features reflections on process (“relationships are the most important part of the job”), and pays tribute to his clients and the meanings they asked him to convey through design. Examples from the Mennonite Archives of Ontario and Fretz’s personal collection demonstrate how his work was (and continues to be) used in real life.

Fretz was already an established consultant when, in 1976, he was asked by Mennonite World Conference to design a logo for their next world assembly in Wichita, Kansas. Fretz helped the organizers see that such a complex event—involving multiple languages and cultures—needed a broader vision of design to achieve its goal of bringing global Mennonites together. Thus began a collaboration with Mennonite World Conference that lasted forty years. Mennonite clients since then have included Mennonite Reporter/Canadian Mennonite, the Mennonite Church (Canada and U.S.), MEDA, and more. Fretz’s career dovetailed with Mennonite organizations’ search for bolder and more expansive visual expressions of their work and values.