Alan Bell
From the Printing Press to the LGBTQ Press
How a 10-year-old Black kid from the hood, fascinated by the technology of printing, discovered journalism and movie titles, eventually becoming the publisher, editor, and graphic designer of two groundbreaking LGBTQ publications—one on each coast: Gaysweek, the only weekly LGBTQ mainstream newspaper at the time of its founding in 1977, and BLK, the first national Black LGBTQ newsmagazine. How an early interest in printing evolved into a lifelong passion for letterforms, design, and spreading the news.
This talk is scheduled to take place as part of the main Typographics conference, taking place June 27–28, 2025. Conference registration is required to attend in person.
About Alan Bell
With a diverse career path that includes printing, publishing, design, journalism, film production, film criticism, sociology and social work, Alan Bell currently specializes in graphic design for non-profit organizations that serve the health, educational and social needs of underserved communities. In addition to founding the ground-breaking LGBTQ publications, Gaysweek and BLK, his career includes film criticism for the Los Angeles Sentinel, and, occasionally, the Los Angeles Times. Since 2010, the Adobe Community Expert has led the non-profit Los Angeles InDesign User Group, promoting collaboration and education in graphic design. A UCLA graduate, he holds multiple degrees in sociology and business, and has studied film at both UCLA and NYU. And one more thing: he’s visited all 50 states.