A beloved Canadian designer and professor, Horst Deppe FGDC, passed away on October 28, 2011. His contribution to students who attended courses at NSCAD and to the entire Canadian design community is hard to summarize. The following tribute is compiled from the GDC website, NSCAD University website, The Canadian Encyclopedia and his obituary.

Professor Emeritus, Horst Deppe FGDC says a few words in 2009 at a retirement party honouring his collegue NSCAD design professor Hanno Ehses.

Horst was born in Hannover, Germany on September 18, 1929. His youth and studies in Germany, as well as travels in Scandinavia, significantly influenced his work. He credits as his mentor Walter Kubbernuss, an artist and designer in the nearby town of Bodenwerder, who tutored him as a young adult with sparking his interest in visual expression and in nature which resulted in hour after hour of sketching. It was not until his college years, attending the Werkkunstschule in Hannover, that he was exposed to graphic design and developed his interest in typography. Horst started his extensive career in the graphic arts while still in Germany in 1945, working as a graphic designer and freelance illustrator.

Horst arrived in Canada in 1955 at the age of 26. His first job was with Royal Print & Litho Ltd. At the time Halifax lacked much in the way of facilities and work for a designer. Horst recalled with great amusement: “The typeface Cable was the only sans-serif available... in two sizes! My major achievement during my first year was the introduction of Futura to the Maritime region.”

In 1962, he was appointed as an instructor at the former Nova Scotia College of Art. There, he remained the only faculty member to teach design courses until the addition of a design division in 1968.

Professor Deppe in class room, circa 1972. Photo: John Knapp.

“When I arrived in 1967...” says Garry Neill Kennedy, former president of NSCAD University, “...we were searching for design personnel to expand, Horst came up with the names of top people, several of whom joined the faculty and remained for many years.” These designers included Anthony (Tony) Mann FGDC, Frank Fox, and Gerhard Doerrié FGDC. It is no small wonder that Horst is credited as putting the “D” in NSCAD. Horst retired as head of the design division in 1995 and was well-loved by his fellow teachers and his many, many students alike. The Canadian Encyclopedia lists Horst among the European-born designers who came to prominence in Canada during the 1960s and ’70s. Over the course of his long career, Horst worked for clients such as the Atlantic Symphony, Saint Mary’s University, Dalhousie Law School, and the Atlantic Canada Institute.

Horst was also able to continued to pursue his artistic endeavours. His love of the outdoors inspired a lifelong body of work in graphic illustration, printmaking, woodcut and watercolour. According to his obituary, he acquired the nickname “the bog man,” as the foggy Canadian swamp was his favourite subject for water colours. He has an impressive record of international exhibitions and is represented in numerous collections. “My painting is for personal expression,” he said, “while design is my way to be productive in society... one balances out the other.” However, despite highly recognized successes in both areas, he chose teaching as his first priority.

In 1990, Horst was recognized with the highest honour that the Society of Graphic Designers of Canada can bestow, GDC Fellowship.

An ecologically and socially aware individual, and an active community volunteer, Horst believed that designers have responsibilities to their environment, community, society at large, and to their profession. The key to successful design, he insisted, was to stay interested in literally everything that surrounds us.

As one of my professors and mentor, Horst’s philosophy of responsibility to our environment, community, society and profession resonated with me and has had a great deal of influence on me personally.

Horst’s family has indicated that donations in Horst Deppe’s name can be made to the Nature Conservancy of Canada (Atlantic). NSCAD University is also accepting donations for the Horst Deppe Alumni Award, which was created in 2007 “as a token of the high esteem” for Professor Deppe. The award is given annually to a full-time student studying design.

Design Work
Some of Horst’s design work can be viewed at: www.ccca.ca/designers/

Artwork
Some of Horst’s artwork can be viewed at: www.secordgallery.com

A Celebration of Horst Deppe
A gathering to reminise and celebrate his life was held Friday, November 18, 2011, in Halifax.
www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=228096943919431

By Richard Osborne CGD