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.

“PRINCE FANTASY” NORM: The world is your oyster. No limits on how you can live your life. A male version of the Princess Fantasy.

“PRINCE FANTASY” FORMS: Performative lounging — not even pretending to be a worker. In some instances, there can be an Eyes Wide Shut vibe — naughty, illicit goings-on are hinted at.

From a 2020 audit of the Men’s Personal Luxury space.