Little Utopia Design is a Graphic Design studio run by Alyssa Lang in Monrovia, California, a small town just outside Los Angeles.
As a professional designer since 1994, I have worked in several professional environments, ranging from a small three-person advertising agency, to a large international consulting firm, culminating in the creation of my own design studio, Little Utopia Design. I have designed interactive kiosks, websites, signage for conference booths, book covers, and international marketing collateral. Currently, my design interests lie mostly in typography, posters, and book design.
After earning a BFA in Studio Art, with a concentration in Graphic Design from West Chester University, I worked in the industry for six years. In 2000, I began working toward an MFA in Graphic and Interactive Design at Tyler School of Art in Philadelphia. Since 2002 I have taught at American University in Washington, D.C., Arcadia University outside Philadelphia, and now at Cal Poly Pomona outside Los Angeles.
I have been fortunate to be recognized by such publications as PRINT Magazine’s Regional Design Annual, the China International Poster Biennial, The Creativity Awards, How Magazine, Create Magazine, and appeared as a runner-up in the STEP Design 100 Competition. As a new direction, I am currently exploring the use of the calligraphy and custom lettering in my design work.
As a Professor at Cal Poly Pomona, I structure my courses as a blend of lecture, discussion, demonstration, hands-on experience, and critique. I implement this pedagogy through projects that promote the creation of original images, skillful craft, and the development of concepts. Using this conceptual approach with an emphasis on image-making, my students have created posters, logos, and magazines, as well as books, book covers, and packaging. With the goal of developing visual literacy and a design vocabulary, my students research, read, and write about the cultural context of graphic design before embarking on a design project. Over the course of ten years of teaching I have taught courses ranging from Fine Art Foundations to Graphic Design Senior Thesis.
For more information, or quotes for your project, contact me at:
alyssa@littleutopia.com