Mobility is an ability that is essential for the survival of every living creature. Humans have different strategies to orient themselves. Only when we lose our orientation do we realize how important finding our way is for our well-being. Wayfinding systems are a visual language through which non-verbal communication with the way-seeker takes place.

The arrow is used as a directional sign in most wayfinding systems because of its simplicity and comprehensibility. But wouldn’t there be other ways to indicate a direction that also have a positive effect on our perception? It would be more effective if the wayfinding system also served the needs of the visitor’s perception, not only the need of orientation, since our perception has a great influence on how we feel in an unfamiliar environment.

In my thesis, I designed various graphic experiments to determine which system positively influences the visitor’s perception and orientation. Among others, the bicycle path of the Lange Erlen in Basel served me as an example for this. By creating graphic systems, I came up with different approaches. The natural environment itself became important, and the question of how much a wayfinding system should interfere with a natural environment. The goal of this project is a wayfinding system that shows the direction with the help of a coding system, stands out from nature but at the same time creates a connection to it.