Behind the Scenes in Typeface Creation: “Tofu”

When there is text that cannot be displayed, a white square is displayed instead. The battle to eliminate this has been in progress for a long time, but many of you may have seen it. As its appearance is similar, this white square is often called “Tofu.” A different design setting can be made depending on the font, so it may not be a white square.

In the case of AXIS Font, design of “Tofu” is a white outlined square with an x-mark. During development, it can be displayed as a three-dimensional tofu icon that even comes with a plate.

In fact, I mistook this icon for strawberry shortcake until a senior co-worker called it “Tofu.” If this tofu is cold tofu, ginger may be on top of it, not a strawberry.

(T.I)