The Code—X project traces an awakening through the digital shift, the name a dual meaning, from code to codex. It acknowledges the post-digital paradigm where the ‘digital’ becomes meaningless and understands ‘code’ as the language of change. It explores the book as a site for exploration, collaboration and play. It includes contributions by 26 artists, designers, academics and publishers that explore the interrelations between information and material from their idiosyncratic perspectives.

The project constitutes a timely survey of this new chapter in publishing looking at a range of innovations and alternative approaches but also looking back at pre-digital strategies and examining some of the benefits and limitations of digital publishing. Our aim is to challenge the very notion of what a book could be(come) in today’s complex information era in relation to what it has been. Seeds were scattered for this project when Danny set up Book—Lab and organised the New Art of Making Books conference at Winchester School of Art in March 2013, and Emmanuelle the BOOKLIVE! conference and ensuing publication The book is alive! held at London South Bank University in June 2012. It became a natural progression for Book—Lab and bookRoom to work together in the making of this publication, building upon research already explored. The design of Code—X within ‘codex’ form represents a playful and daring twist of ink imitating pixel to render composition and design. The content is seen as a continuous scroll, cropped where screen meets paper edge. We celebrate both camps by highlighting dichotomies of edge to scroll, sequence to time and image to place.

Code­–X brings together a selection of personal histories of the current ‘transforming’ and ‘expanding’ of the book medium with the aim to challenge the very notion of what it could be(come) in today’s complex information era. The design of Code—X within codex form represents a playful twist of ink imitating pixel to render composition and design. The content is seen as a continuous scroll, cropped where screen meets paper edge. We celebrate both camps by highlighting dichotomies of edge to scroll, sequence to time and image to place.

Featuring essays, interviews and works by: Delphine Bedel, Simon Cutts, Sebastien Girard, Hans Gremmen, Andrew Haslam with Rose Gridneff & Alex Cooper, Alec Finlay with Ken Cockburn, Alessandro Ludovico, Silvio Lorusso, Katharine Meynell with Susan Johanknecht, Grégoire Pujade-Lauraine, AND Publishing, Colin Sackett, Jodie Silsby, Paul Soulellis, Stefan Szczelkun, John Warwicker (Tomato), Eric Watier, Maria White, Beth Williamson, David Lorente Zaragoza.