Hey there! My name is Alissa. I’m a writer, a gelato-eater, and a walker in LA.
You can learn more about who I am, what I write, why I walk, and even see where I live and work. Last year I was honored to be named as an USC/Annenberg Getty Arts Journalism fellow. You also might like this talk I gave about how to do the work you love.
Welcome to Gelatobaby
Follow me at @gelatobaby
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Come say hello
- GOOD Design for Cities
A new event series hosted by Alissa and supported in part by ArtPlace is coming to Portland and St. Louis. Here's how creatives can apply to be part of it.
- GOOD Design for Cities
Check out our next de LaB
- Design East of La Brea is a monthly party I co-host with Haily Zaki, Marissa Gluck and Erin Cullerton. Almost always east of La Brea. Learn more about past de Labs and sign up for our monthly newsletter.
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Click on some recent posts
Read my articles elsewhere
You can find my writing most days at GOOD, or at Fast Company's new design site, Co.Design, or over at Dwell. You can also read about my 13 favorite stories from 2010.
- Waaaaay Back to the Future
Fast Company, August 2011
Nike's 23-year journey to make Marty McFly's AirMag shoes real. - Meet the Makers
Details, July 2011
Profile of Saul Griffith, an engineer and inventor who could change the way we make... everything. - Sasaki's Heartbeat
Dwell, June 2011
A studio visit with the Japanese-born artist Sasaki, who has been drawing people's heartbeats for 15 years. - Is LA's Public Transit a Joke? This Comedian Sure Hopes So
GOOD, June 2011
For comedian Kristina Wong, living car-free isn't just an act. - Middle School Students Tell LAUSD: No More Styrofoam
GOOD, April 2011
A group of sixth graders mounts a campaign to rid their school of the evil white foam. - The Future of Reading Online [Video]
Fast Company, March 2011
At SXSW, I interviewed designer Khoi Vinh about tablets, pay walls, and browsers. - How LA's "Farmers Field" Could Boost Urban Agriculture
GOOD, February 2011
Let's turn the city's new football stadium into the world's biggest urban farm. - BOOM! Palm Springs Plans a Wacky Old Folks Community
Fast Company, February 2011
10 architects have collaborated on a very unique new kind of retirement home for gays. - The Design Difference
GOOD, January 2011
How can design help create change in the underserved community of Brownsville, New York? A three-part series. - Why We Don't Need Any More Anonymous Critics
GOOD, January 2011
Let's stop the dining in disguise and make food critics powerful, public voices for real social change. - The Rise of the Bus-Riding Celebrity
GOOD, October 2010
Why don't more eco-minded celebrities in LA take public transit? - Can Design Save the World?
Fast Company, October 2010
Profiles of superstar emerging designers Candy Chang and Bobby C. Martin, Jr. - Where My Ladies At?
GOOD, August 2010
Why aren't there more women in industrial design? - At Home with Ed Begley, Jr.
Dwell, June 2010
I visited LA's greenest celebrity to talk about gardening, solar panels and riding the bus. - Why I Write About Design Now
GOOD, May 2010
How we need to cover the design industry: Without a chair in the world. - Here's Why the Banksy Movie is a Banksy Prank
Fast Company, April 2010
The world's most famous street artist makes a documentary? I'm not buying it. - If You Lived Here, You'd Be Urban By Now
GOOD, Spring 2010
The case against fake "walkable urbanism" developments which are neither walkable or urban. - Why Can't the World's Best Architects Build Better Websites?
Fast Company, March 2010
Loading... - The Fake Freeway Sign that Became a Real Public Service
GOOD, January 2010
Artist Richard Ankrom's act of guerrilla public service improved the commuter experience.
- Waaaaay Back to the Future
View my photos
Try some gelato
- Catch up on my latest gelato adventures, or find gelato using my Gelatobaby GeLAtomap.
Monthly Archives: September 2008
Eat My Words: Mr. Sean Bonner’s Neighborhood
Having just moved to a new neighborhood, I’ve been frantically trying to nail down my local services—coffeeshop, farmers market, and most importantly, gelateria—by culling recommendations from my neighbors, longtime residents, and my best friend, Internet. But it wasn’t always so … Continue reading
Posted in creating, Good, riding, traveling
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Birds of Hollywood
I don’t know about you, but this is what I wake up to every morning. It starts at 7am in a nearby eucalyptus tree, swells to a fever pitch an hour later and then fades to a random chirp by … Continue reading
Posted in creating, greening
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Colfax Googie
East Colfax is a little slice of Southern California in the heart of Denver. Funky signage and 1960′s architecture grace this gently-gentrifying stretch of businesses offering a heady mix of liquor, loans and lounges. While visiting my sister on an … Continue reading
Posted in advertising, building, traveling
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Christoph Niemann’s Chinese lessons
Sometime between seeing 2008 drummers pummeling 2008 drums and envisioning 2008 pairs of soiled Depends, I realized that all the apprehension of a “Chinese Olympics” had made me forget that they were taking place in the mythical land of China. … Continue reading
Posted in creating, reading
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Joyce Rutter Kaye leaving, Emily Gordon leading at Print
Last week I had one of those moments of befuddled emotions when I got an email from my editor at Print, Joyce Rutter Kaye. After an astounding 10 1/2 years at Print, Joyce is moving onto another great gig at … Continue reading
Posted in designing, reading, writing
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Eat My Words: Princess of silkscreening power
My younger sister Beth and I have birthdays five short days apart. The last week of August holds some of the giddiest anticipation of the year, as I ship off her gift then wait to see what delectable goodness will … Continue reading
Posted in crafting, creating, ReadyMade, wearing
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