Louise Fili Brings Her Signature Style to the 2025 National Book Festival Poster

This is a guest post by Maria Peña, Public Affairs Specialist at the Library of Congress. 

We’re excited to unveil the 2025 Library of Congress National Book Festival poster, designed by award-winning artist Louise Fili, a master of elegant typography and vintage-inspired design, also known for her distinctive blend of modernist clarity and European Art Deco influences. The Orange, New Jersey native boasts an extensive portfolio that includes nearly 2,000 book jackets designed during her tenure at Pantheon Books, and her work now spans everything from literary jackets to iconic food and restaurant branding. An American Institute of Graphic Arts medalist and Art Directors Club Hall of Fame inductee, Fili brings a timeless visual voice to this year’s festival theme: “Uniting Book Lovers for 25 Years.”

You can download a high-resolution PDF of the festival poster, plus view and download others through the years from our National Book Festival poster gallery. Stay tuned for more information about printed versions of the poster closer to the festival on Sept. 6 at the Washington Convention Center.

In an interview, Fili explained her creative process, philosophy, and the symbolism and inspiration for her artwork. The interview has been edited for clarity and conciseness.

Maria Peña: You’re a legend in typography, branding and design. What drew you to Italian and Art Deco design? Tell us about your background as an artist. 

Louise Fili: My parents were both born in Italy, and I took my first trip there as a teenager, where I had a typographic and gastronomic epiphany. Graphic design was not a term yet used; instead, it was known as commercial art. I sent away for an Osmiroid pen, which I saw advertised in the New Yorker and taught myself calligraphy, creating illuminated manuscripts of Bob Dylan lyrics to sell to classmates. From there, I studied art at Skidmore College and left early to take a semester at the School of Visual Arts in New York City. I worked for the legendary Herb Lubalin before taking on the job as art director of Pantheon Books, where I stayed for 11 years, designing close to 2,000 book jackets. In 1989, I opened my eponymous studio to focus on restaurant branding, food packaging, books, and font design.

MP: Many of your designs have become iconic. Can you walk us through your creative process? Where do you find inspiration? 

LF: When I would design a book jacket, I would draw a rectangle and fill it with the title of the book, which I would write over and over, letting the words speak to me, on page after page of my tracing pad. Without realizing it, I was treating the book title like a logo, which prepared me for branding work later on. My studio is a walk-in archive of all the flea-market finds I have collected over the years in Italy and France. It is a great source of inspiration for me.

MP: As your artwork has transitioned from book design to product branding, what has remained constant in your design philosophy through the years?

LF: For every project I create, I always seek to develop unique typography. That’s what gives a logo staying power and makes it harder to copy.

MP: What interested you in working with the National Book Festival?  

LF: I was a bibliophile from a very early age, spending every Saturday at the public library, and later in high school working at both the school and local libraries. I remember being obsessed not only with reading the books but also studying the typography and illustration.

MP: For this year’s poster, you created a striking composition. Can you explain the meaning or intent here? Please tell us about your design.

LF: In my work, the typography always drives the design. I was delighted to discover that the words NATIONAL and FESTIVAL each contained the same number of letters, and I have always been looking for a way to use letters on book spines effectively. That opportunity had finally arrived!

MP: You value emotional connection in design, and your work is often rooted in nostalgia. What do you hope people feel when they see this poster?

LF: My work is rooted in history, not nostalgia per se. I hope that the rich colors and lush typography of the book spines will evoke memories of books sitting on shelves, waiting to be opened and enjoyed.