Signal Flag Poems, The Letter Edged in Black Press, Inc.; Hannah Weiner

Cryptograph: An Exhibition for Alan Turing," Mar-2012, Stephen Goddard
As the artist states in her concise introduction, these poems are both drawn from and transformed into the signals set forth in The International Code of Signals for the Use of All Nations. Conceived in 1855, this code facilitated communication between ships at sea. These three-letter alphabetic ciphers could be created visually by flags and later combinations of lights, or sonically by Morse code. This system not only allowed sailors to communicate across wide swathes of ocean, but also functioned as a kind of common language that could be understood regardless of linguistic or national affiliation. Therefore, like mathematics and art, this code transcends verbal barriers. Furthermore, Weiner’s use of The International Code of Signals allowed the poet/artist to navigate fluidly between the visual, written, and spoken expression.