Landmarks vs signage: anchoring navigation in the built environment

Wayfinding isn’t just about putting up signs. It’s about making spaces legible—so people can understand, move, and orient themselves with ease. Landmarks are central to this. They help us remember where we are, recognise decision points, and navigate with confidence. Often, they’re more intuitive and more effective than traditional signage.

Why landmarks matter

When we give directions, we use cues we remember, and that others may recognise or remember too. We say things like “turn left at the statue” or “walk past the café, then it’s on your right.” These are the cues our brains naturally latch onto. They’re visible, memorable, and easy to share with others.

A distinctive sculpture, an open atrium, or a vivid feature wall does more than lift the aesthetics. It becomes a spatial anchor—something people recognise, use to orient themselves, and remember for next time.

Landmarks are functional, not just decorative

It’s easy to treat landmarks as decorative moments or public art placements. But if they’re considered early, they can do a lot of heavy lifting. They highlight key moments on a journey, guide movement, and help users make quick, confident decisions.

To work well, landmarks should be:

• recognisable (e.g. "walk past the large tiger statue")

• not easily confused with nearby elements (for example, avoid a row of three birds, but use clearly distinct forms like a fountain, a red phone box, or a large clock)

• designed with discernible sides or orientation cues, so people know they’re walking past it in a particular direction, and can recognise it again from the other side on their return

• visually distinct from their surroundings

• easy to describe using simple, everyday language

• appropriate and understandable across different cultures and age groups

• not reliant on colour alone, as many users experience colour vision deficiency

In the right setting, they can even reduce or eliminate the need for signs.

When signage still plays a role

Landmarks help with general orientation, but signs still have a job to do—especially when detail is needed. Think room numbers, service desks, restricted access areas, or complex layouts.

But the best signage doesn’t carry the system—it supports it. When the environment is already clear, signage becomes a simple layer of reassurance rather than the only source of guidance.

Designing with landmarks from the start

Landmarks aren’t features to add at the end. They should be part of the early planning, considered alongside movement flows, layouts, and line of sight.

We map the moments where people pause, hesitate, or change direction—and plan for environmental features to support them. That might mean shaping a corridor to frame a tower, choosing texture or colour to signal a lift lobby, or naming a wing after a feature users can actually see. An atrium, for example, can act as a strong landmark—but only if it includes distinct, memorable features that help users orient themselves and understand direction. Without those cues, it risks becoming just another open space.

Building places that speak

A well-designed space communicates without saying much. It helps people move without needing to ask. And it does that best when every element—from the architecture to the graphics to the smallest spatial cue—is working together.

Landmarks are a quiet but powerful part of that system. When used intentionally, they don’t just help people find their way—they help people feel like they belong.