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
- @JinxMcGillicudd Crested Butte, Colorado
- Due to last night's blizzard, the snowbride is now wearing a fashionable veil. http://t.co/PiYYUYB0
- @GetDianeFarr Ha! Thanks, I like to keep my readers on their toes.
- What's a park, really? My story on Southern California's first parklet, located in Long Beach, is in today's @LAWeekly http://t.co/HWgVcrtY
- My story at @ForYourArt on Suzanne Lacy's powerful public performance artwork @3WeeksInJan http://t.co/R2sWn7XL #RapeEndsHere
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.
-
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 2010
GOOD Design Bay Area is tonight!
I had to escape LA’s record-and-thermometer-shattering heat, so I headed to San Francisco yesterday…which was a steamy (for SF) 84 degrees! But I’m also here to moderate one of my favorite events, GOOD Design Bay Area! I was thrilled to … Continue reading
Posted in designing, Good, speaking, traveling
View Comments
Pumpkin gingersnap gelato and chocolate orange sorbetto
103 degrees on September 26. Funny how the seasons haven’t lined up like they were supposed to this year. We spent all “summer” waiting for summer to arrive, and then it was fall. Now it looks like fall, and tastes … Continue reading
Exposition
I suppose seasoned design writers eventually become accustomed to this sensation, but I never seem to get over the thrill of seeing something I first wrote about as a series of renderings and visions—years and years ago—actually become a reality. … Continue reading
Posted in building, designing, riding, Street Walker, writing
View Comments
Parking, lots
Last Friday, friends and neighbors enjoyed a sunny September afternoon on Sunset Boulevard as part of Park[ing] Day, a global movement to convert parking spaces into parks for the day. We set up our de LaB-sponsored effort outside my favorite … Continue reading
Posted in building, creating, designing, walking
View Comments
Harvest colors
Without really trying, today’s salad was exclusively composed in hues of green, yellow and orange, which I thought gave it a nice almost-fall feeling. (Note in background: Two pumpkins, one that mysteriously grew in our garden.) But this salad is … Continue reading
Posted in eating, growing
View Comments
Rebuilding
During the summer I spent researching and writing City Walks Architecture: New York, I kept putting Lower Manhattan off. I had been to Ground Zero a few times before on trips to New York, so it’s not that I hadn’t … Continue reading
Posted in building, City Walks, traveling
View Comments
Palm tree wannabe
I can’t even imagine what made this possible. Aspirational vegetation in Silver Lake. More Street Walker photos.
Posted in growing, Street Walker
View Comments
Statement of purpose
After coming down from one of the most life-transforming journalism experiences I’ve ever encountered (more on that later!), I was honored to learn this week that I have been chosen as one of seven USC Annenberg/Getty Arts Journalism Fellows, a … Continue reading
Posted in building, creating, designing, speaking, Street Walker, traveling, USC/Annenberg Getty, writing
View Comments
Studio tour
Come on in! The studio—as well as the house—that Keith and I share is featured as a Studio Insider piece over at the wonderful blog Felt & Wire. We even let you peek inside the garage. Also today, there’s a … Continue reading
Posted in advertising, building, crafting, creating, designing
View Comments
