ITC Bette is a particularly elegant calligraphic design from the hand of Patty King. Refined and friendly, this vertical script appears to be drawn with a brush held delicately at a right angle to the page.
ITC Bette History
The unconnected letters and flared ascenders of ITC Bette create a feeling of spontaneity, while the design’s vertical stress produces a calming counterpoint. Many capital letters drop comfortably below the baseline, and terminals echo a flick of the wrist.
Known to her friends as Patty and her family as Trisha, King grew up in northern California. Though she displayed artistic inclinations at an early age, it wasn’t until her mid-twenties that she decided to pursue her talent and returned to college to study graphic design. Patty gravitated easily to calligraphy, lettering, and then typeface design. Over the succeeding years, a diverse list of clients commissioned her services.
Sadly, this is the last typeface design ITC will license from Patty King. She succumbed to a prolonged illness just prior to completing the design. At her request, all royalties from the sale of this – and all her other ITC fonts – will be donated to the charity she identified before her passing.
