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
- No public Twitter messages.
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.
Category Archives: advertising
Sticking with it
I was fully prepared to hate these new “Go Green” stamps. But once I got a sheet, I found them rather charming. I actually can’t bring myself to stick them on a letter. But my favorite part, I think, is … Continue reading
Posted in advertising, creating, designing, riding, walking
View Comments
South by so long
It has taken me so long to recover from the madness of this year’s SXSW—and specifically, this stuffed avocado—that I had to wait an entire three weeks to write about it. You’ve probably heard already about the overcrowding and overcommercialization … Continue reading
Posted in advertising, creating, designing, eating, Fast Company, Good, speaking, traveling
View Comments
The business of transience
I know, I know, I’ve got lots to report from my recent comings and goings (for a preview of last week’s trip to Austin, check my photos here). But comings and goings were exactly the topic of conversation during a … Continue reading
Posted in advertising, creating, designing, eating, speaking
View Comments
I’m on The Career Clinic tomorrow
I’m very excited to announce that tomorrow I’ll be a guest on The Career Clinic, the radio show hosted by Maureen Anderson about that endless quest to find out what we all really want to be when we grow up. … Continue reading
Posted in advertising, creating, designing, speaking, teaching, writing
View Comments
Haunted house
The Ghost Project – Alissa Walker / Keith Scharwath from Kartell LA on Vimeo. A few weeks ago, we were asked by our friend Jon to babysit a Kartell Ghost Chair, the regal yet approachable Louis XV-style chair rendered in … Continue reading
Posted in advertising, creating, designing, watching
View Comments
So this is Christmas
Four years ago, I wrote a piece for Design Observer, “War Is Over, If You Want It,” about my favorite Christmas song, which also happens to be one of my favorite advertising campaigns of all time. When I wrote the … Continue reading
Posted in advertising, designing, watching
View Comments
Last chance to see the California Design Biennial!
A few months ago I posted about the opening of the very exciting California Design Biennial, which I helped curate. Hard to believe, but weeks have evaporated and now the show is in its last week at the Pasadena Museum … Continue reading
Posted in advertising, building, creating, designing, speaking
View Comments
On Today’s DnA: Gap Flap
Who would have ever thought, one month ago, that we would all be talking about the Gap? I certainly didn’t (and yes, I still call it THE Gap, as does everyone else, even though it’s officially just Gap). I haven’t … Continue reading
Posted in advertising, designing, DnA
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
