Erik Carter

As the graphic design field faces new cultural and ethical challenges, Design Harder offers a timely response. ‍ Written by Erik Carter, an influential voice whose work bridges commercial design and critical discourse, the book challenges readers to reconsider what graphic design can be. Through seven interconnected essays, Carter probes the purpose, power, and potential future of the field—inviting readers to imagine a more sustainable and equitable artistic practice while offering the tools to reform the industry for the better. In close collaboration with designer and editor Aryn Beitz, Carter channels his distinctive wit into an incisive, illuminating, and ultimately hope-filled recontextualization of the graphic design industry at large.

Building off ideas Carter has been exploring over the last decade, this new collection is steeped within not only a biting criticism, but a pure, unfiltered love for graphic design. “Erik is a prime example of what happens when there is an attempt to be fully tapped into everything going on around you. When idea and commentary meet form and allure. His work is one part institutional and cultural critique. One part clever, funny, and insightful. One part treatment, execution, and medium. Additionally, Erik’s presence, performance, and timeliness on Social Media is a strange blueprint for what the contribution to contemporary Discourse on Design and Culture looks and sounds like on the internet.” - David Chathas