This calligraphy typeface, developed in 1995 and distributed by the International Typeface Corp. (ITC), is based on a script designed by Richard Bradley. The ITC Bradley Hand™ font family boasts a casual, albeit balanced, line and what has been described as a “felt pen on rough paper” look.
A self-taught artist, British designer Bradley has defined a career in freelance design with a niche focus on Christian literature. His typeface designs often have a calligraphic or handwritten style.
The ITC Bradley Hand design was developed in collaboration with Bradley’s fellow British designer, Colin Brignall. The original focus of the project was to develop a typeface specifically for dry transfer lettering; it was eventually developed for use in digital display as well.
It is based directly on Richard Bradley’s own handwriting and has a much more casual feel than many of his other calligraphy-based designs. It gives the impression of a personal, handwritten note and brings a human touch to digital correspondence. It was later enhanced and refined for improved digital display in the Bradley Type™ font family.
ITC Bradley Hand
Weights of ITC Bradley HandThe ITC Bradley Hand design is recommended for headlines and short to mid-length texts. It has good legibility at point sizes as small as 8. Although not recommended for professional correspondence, it would be an asset as a design element in an ad or branding campaign. It is a very balanced handwritten typeface and functions as a much more refined design element than some other handwriting fonts.