Secret codes, meaningful numbers, and

rebellious editors!

Language can be both complicated and simple, and as technology has progressed, we have found creative ways to communicate with one another. For example, we use emojis to interact and express our feelings. Artists use different modes of communication in their work, sometimes creating their own language. In Preamble 4 , Christopher Jagmin rewrote the first sentence of the U.S. Constitution using Polari, a covert language used in the early 1900s that borrowed slang from other cultures to create a safe way for marginalized communities to communicate, like a secret code.

Something meaningful can be communicated simply, like through numbers. The historical date in Glenn Ligon’s One Black Day (II) 5 commemorates President Barack Obama’s final day in office, January 20, 2017, while also marking the beginning of a big change in leadership. Dates tell stories that can be pieced together to create a larger narrative. They are used to communicate personal meaning, like birthdays or anniversaries, but also mark moments of historical significance that become collective knowledge, such as July 4.

In her Proof-Reading series 6 , Ann Morton edits short phrases in simple ways to express her own response to the original remarks. Using the proofreading key, revise the following statements to create your own meaning.

A picture is worth a thousand words.

All that glitters is not gold.

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Rome wasn’t built in a day.