Mashikaku®
moji.design · 2017
A contemporary display typeface built on an 11×11 square grid using only horizontal and vertical strokes, drawing on the Edo-period Japanese kakuji lettering tradition.
About
Rooted in kakuji — the geometric kanji abstraction found on Edo-period craftsmen's coats and ukiyo-e woodblock prints — the design strips each character to its essential identifying elements without sacrificing legibility. Negative space is deliberately preserved, replacing the dense space-filling intensity of historical kakuji with a lighter, more open construction. The CJK edition covers all 20,992 CJK Unified Ideographs alongside full Jōyō kanji, JIS, Big5 and General Standard Chinese Characters support.
Classification
A display typeface constructed exclusively from horizontal and vertical strokes on an 11×11 grid, rooted in the Edo-period Japanese kakuji tradition. Its geometric rigour and square framework place it firmly in the display category, with no diagonal strokes and a strong decorative-typographic heritage.