The CODE-X series catalogs a vast codex of source codes (aka “signs”) extracted from past audits.

The object of study in semiotics is not the signs but rather a general theory of signification; the goal of each “audit” is to build a model demonstrating how meaning is produced and received within a category or cultural territory. Signs on their own, therefore, only become truly revelatory and useful once we’ve sorted them into thematic complexes, and the complexes into codes, and the codes into a meaning map. We call this process “thick description”; the Code-X series is thin description.

“STEP BY STEP” NORM: Respect the process. Don’t think about how far you have to go, think about how far you’ve come already.

“STEP BY STEP” FORMS: Journeys/steps as visual metaphor for a long process. People living in the moment, not worrying about the future. Encouraging, peer-to-peer, no pressure. “Take small steps.” “Trust the journey.” “Begin with a single step.”

From a 2018 study of the GET IT BACK space, defined as “Yes, your life has changed for the worse — but there’s reason to be optimistic. We can fix this.“