Tourist Signs: the literal inscription of the city in the physical and virtual landscape

Abstract

This article addresses an urban element increasingly present in the city's landscape: signs implanted in the physical space that identify the place where they are located. Despite being widely spread, this urban element still does not find an objective classification about its characterization as signage, street furniture, urban sculpture, or others, which this study intends to answer. In turn, it is important to connect this urban element with new demands for public space and city landscapes from the 2000s on. We can verify how these signs are integrated into urban marketing strategies, helping to promote tourism and also strongly linking people, places and landscapes in social networks. From the methodological point of view, this work relies on a systematic literature review and on secondary sources that complement the construction of a theoretical basis, proposing the designation of Tourist Signs. The conclusion is that they are key pieces for the understanding of the city in current times with varied appropriations that are made from them, expanding the meanings of the real and virtual public space with the expansion of globalization and social media.