Stefan Kanchev

I came across the work of Bulgarian designer Stefan Kanchev through an image posted on Dropular. Once on his website I couldn’t believe how much of his work I was already familiar with from years of flicking through trademark and logo books.

Stefan Kanchev was born in Kalofer, Bulgaria in 1915. He initially studied classically as a mural painter, but throughout his career worked in many different areas of applied graphics. All Kanchev’s work draws inspiration from folk art and traditions - a flowing, organic feel, simple shapes and clean composition.

He is probably best known for his command of logo and trademark design, which was celebrated in 1994 when he was recognised at the 1st International Logo Conference, Ostend, Belgium as one of the ten best masters of logos in the world, ranking alongside the likes of Paul Rand and Saul Bass.


Stefan Kanchev died aged 86 in 2001 leaving behind a an amazing collection of work. There's a dedicated website of his life’s work, and although the English translation isn’t complete yet, there are lots and lots of images and graphics to look through.

Images copyright Stefan Kanchev.