{"id":4587,"date":"2022-06-14T21:53:37","date_gmt":"2022-06-15T02:53:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/?p=4587"},"modified":"2022-06-15T12:44:13","modified_gmt":"2022-06-15T17:44:13","slug":"nan-parati","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/nan-parati\/","title":{"rendered":"Informed by Art: Signmaker Nan Parati on Newport, New Orleans, and Her Craft"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\u201cStop.\u201d \u201cExit.\u201d \u201cWet Floor.\u201d From a purely functional perspective, readers encounter signs countless times throughout their day. They have become so commonplace that many are understandable by mere symbols without text. But at what point does a sign become more than just notice or direction? We are similarly swimming in an ocean of sounds yet most would not identify but a few as \u201cmusic.\u201d Signmaker Nan Parati has mastered the space in which written information becomes art. Her signs, frequently associated with some of the most premier music festivals in the world- including the Newport Jazz Festival, the Newport Folk Festival, and New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival- are more than indicators of who is on a set performance stage. Her swirls, stars, and even her own copyrighted font, are often as reflective of an artist\u2019s identity as their music itself. It\u2019s no surprise her name came up in a conversation with Stuart Bogie on his thoughts of performing at Newport.<\/a> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

We continue our series on the history of the Newport Jazz Festival <\/a>by stepping a little behind the scenes. Parati, who has crafted signs for George Wein\u2019s most prized festivals for several decades, shares with us part of her story.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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PostGenre: When and how did you start making signs?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nan Parati: It is a funny story. In 1983, before Whole Foods Markets were everywhere, there was a place in New Orleans called the Whole Food Company. I was a kid and began working in Whole Food Company\u2019s produce department. I was not a good fit there and ended up getting fired. The day my boss was going to fire me, I convinced him to move me to the cheese department instead. It ultimately didn\u2019t work out there either. So, in about two weeks, I got fired from two different jobs. On my last day in the cheese department, I found out the store\u2019s signwriter was leaving, and I knew that was the job I was supposed to do. <\/p>

I convinced the manager to give me one last chance, this time as a sign writer. He gave me a shot, and it ended up working out. I did so well making signs that I ultimately became the Company\u2019s head of advertising. I always thought it was funny that I went from being fired twice to being the head of advertising. <\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

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PG: How did the grocery signs move over to music festivals?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

NP: Well, at that time, Jazzfest [The New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival] used painted banners made by a guy named Roy Lands. Old Jazzfest photographs will show you his work. <\/p>

But Jazzfest didn’t have anyone writing signs for the stages or, really, anything else. The Jazzfest organizers saw my signs at Whole Foods Company and asked me to do the stage signs for the 1985 festival. I agreed and made all the stage signs with the band names. The next year, they called me back and asked if I could also do parking and no parking signs. I agreed, and the rest is history. <\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

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PG: How did your signs move beyond Jazzfest to other festivals?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

NP: Roy Lands retired after I had worked for Jazzfest for a few years. With Roy leaving, Jazzfest needed someone else to do their banners, and I started learning how to paint them. My dad was a graphic designer, so I grew up making signs and learning from him. My experience working with my dad certainly helped with the banner painting, but I still needed to learn a lot to paint them. It was a challenge but also a lot of fun. For one of the banners, I painted the Jazzfest logo freehand. [Jazzfest producer] Quint Davis, who I hadn\u2019t met previously, saw the banner and was surprised I could paint it so well.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n

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