Alisa Damaso

Alisa Damaso is a multidisciplinary designer and the Lead Visual Designer at SF New Deal, a nonprofit dedicated to helping under-resourced small businesses succeed while enhancing neighborhood vibrancy through supportive services and financial opportunities.

Originally from Los Angeles County, Alisa grew up in a working-class Filipino immigrant family, where she developed a deep commitment to community care inspired by her parents’ tradition of sending balikbayan boxes back home. Early exposure to the Internet sparked her awareness of social injustices, fueling her passion for social change. Childhood road trips to San Francisco shaped her love for the city’s quirky culture, Victorian architecture, and green spaces, and she has proudly called the Bay Area home for 12 years.

As the founder of VLY GRL, a brand that challenges stereotypes through bold accessories, apparel, and zines, Alisa brings a unique blend of creativity, strategy, and joy to her work. Alisa’s design expertise spans graphic design, branding, illustration, and lettering, with experience across in-house, agency, and independent capacities. She has created impactful illustrations, documents, and branding and marketing campaigns for clients such as Tillamook, Planned Parenthood, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Capitol Corridor, and the Yerba Buena Community Benefit District.

Her design process is conceptual, clever, and collaborative, prioritizing projects that align with her values of spreading positivity, fostering connection, and driving meaningful change. Whether she’s crafting thoughtful brand identities, designing illustrations and lettering pieces, or conceptualizing marketing campaigns, Alisa approaches each project with passion and purpose.

When she’s not designing, Alisa enjoys running in Golden Gate Park while listening to books and spooky podcasts, hiking Bay Area trails, attending live shows and local events, and singing in the band Vincent Gargiulo National Park.