Nan Parati's Hand-Lettered Signs Define Jazz Fest for 42 Years

Sign writer Nan Parati has been the on-site sign writer for the New Orleans Jazz Fest for 42 years, developing a distinctive hand-lettering style that has become synonymous with music festivals nationwide. Her bouncy flourishes and exaggerated serifs, which she calls "Fun Times Roman" and "Nanuscript," also appear at the Newport Jazz and Newport Folk Festivals. Parati's career began after being fired twice from Whole Foods in her early 20s, leading her to pursue sign writing. She joined Jazz Fest in 1985, initially writing performers' names in cursive before evolving her style over decades. During the COVID era, her style developed further as she received numerous sign requests. Parati hand-writes over 3,000 signs annually for Jazz Fest and also designs backdrops and on-site visuals. She works out of her home studio and uses the tailgate of her truck as a desk. Parati's favorite letter is S, and she dislikes K's. She has noticed imitators copying her style over the past decade and encourages others to develop their own fonts.