I Could Write a Book

Alicia Bay Laurel

Alicia Bay Laurel (born Alicia Kaufman, May 14, 1949 in Hollywood, California) is an American artist, author, and musician. Laurel is best known for her 1970 book "Living On The Earth", a notable guide for participants in the American back-to-the-land movement of the 1960s and 1970s. Laurel grew up exposed to the arts, intellectual ideas and political activism. Her mother, Verna Lebow, was a sculptor and her father, Paul Kaufman, was a doctor. She briefly attended the Otis Art Institute, San Francisco State University, and San Francisco Fashion Institute before seeking her own course driven by these influences. She studied music as well, and learned open-tuned guitar improvisation from John Fahey, who at the time was married to her cousin Janet Lebow. Laurel … more »