Sebastian Carter

b. 1941, Cambridge

Brief biography

Sebastian Carter was born in Cambridge, in 1941. After studying English Literature and Fine Arts at King’s College, Cambridge, he worked for several publishers and designers in London and Paris before taking up a role in 1966 in his father’s business, Rampant Lion Press, becoming a partner in 1971. Given Carter’s father, William Carter, was a highly skilled craftsman of typography and calligraphy, it isn’t surprising that he has developed a life-long passion for and an extensive knowledge of typography. Sebastian Carter has written extensively on typography for national and international reviews, including ‘The Times Literary Supplement’, and has contributed sections to ‘The Oxford Companion to the Book’. In 2013 the American Printing History Association awarded him their laureate award. Carter also contributed to significant works produced by Rampant Lion Press, including ‘The Rampant Lions Press: A Narrative Catalogue’, that accompanied a retrospective of the companies work at the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge, in 1982. Carter lives in Cambridge and is retired, but continues to write.