Evolving out of the New York tradition of popular eclecticism, her covers have drawn liberally on the history of design, from Art Nouveau to Italian Deco. Fili, who worked with Herb Lubalin in the 1970s, incorporated his neo-Victorian pluralism into her own more subtle style. Her gentle palette, use of historical references, and rejection of glossy finishes in favor of matte laminates reflected the decorative yet restrained post-modernism of the 1980s, made famous by architect Michael Graves. A related body of work was produced by Carin Goldberg, who had worked with Paula Scher at CBS Records in the late 70s before becoming an independent designer for publishers and other clients in New York. The deliberate quietness of Fili's and Goldberg's covers attracted attention on crowded book displays, where the dominant style favored closely packed letterforms aggressively bulging off covers and jackets. [back] © Copyright 1996 Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum

The Lover Book cover, 1983, offset lithograph Designer and art director: Louise Fili (b. 1951) Publisher: Pantheon, New York Collection Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum, Gift of Steven Heller The Sonnets to Orpheus Book cover, 1985, offset lithograph Designer: Carin Goldberg (b. 1953) Art director: Frank Metz Publisher: Simon and Schuster, New York Collection Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum, Gift of the designer