Military raked by critics online after unveiling new army logo

Murray Brewster · CBC News

· Posted: May 03, 2024 6:51 PM EDT | Last Updated: 8 minutes ago

The Canadian Army learned some valuable lessons Friday: art is in the eye of the beholder and it pays to be precise, even on social media.

The military faced a huge backlash online after unveiling a new logo for the army on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter.

The post led many to believe that the service's official emblem was being changed.

The Department of National Defence proactively issued a statement expressing regret for the confusion and clarifying that the traditional emblem will remain the same.

"The Canadian Army has not changed its official logo," said DND's senior communications adviser Alex Tétreault in a media statement.

"We remain proud of our official emblem — which remains two crossed swords, three maple leaves and a royal crown."

The new logo, launched with a slick video, shows the camera rolling through a mesh of camouflage netting, where brown and beige pixels reform under a tan maple leaf into a jagged puzzle on one side with a drooping, oblong extension on the other.

The response on social media was instantaneous and largely negative. Many people said they didn't know what to make of it and wondered what it represented; others denounced the rebranding, thinking the traditional emblem was being changed.

It also didn't take long for the memes to arrive. One depicted a man under a maple leaf hugging the behind of an enthusiastic moose.

DND insisted the new logo is not for everyday use.

"The icon launched today is a supplementary design that will be used in the bottom left corner of certain communications products and in animations for videos," said Tétreault.

"This icon comes in addition to our official logo — and is meant to coincide with the launch of a new camouflage pattern: the Canadian Disruptive Pattern Multi-Terrain (CADPAT MT)."

The army is in the process of revamping its camouflage uniforms.

The defence department statement goes on to explain the intent and the reason for the colour pattern, but doesn't say what the shape is supposed to represent.

Some social media posts described the logo in artsy terms as "provocative." Others described it as a Lego moose, as well as "sloppy" and "ugly."

The rebranding was an in-house exercise, the department said.

"The icon was developed without additional funds or involvement of external companies," said Tétreault. "It was developed by DND's internal graphic design team, and this icon comes at zero expense to the taxpayer."