I understand your point, but I think it’s important to be careful with blanket statements like that.
Even if the Wayfarer team rejected a similar tile in the past, it doesn’t mean all painted tiles are automatically unacceptable. Criteria are guidelines — not a blacklist of object types — and they specifically mention that each submission should be judged based on its own uniqueness, story, and local relevance.
If this were truly a global rule (“no tiles ever”), I believe the team would have made that clear in an official clarification or rejection reason — not through vague feedback like “mass production” or “abuse,” especially when evidence to the contrary is provided.
I’m not trying to push something just to get it accepted — I genuinely believe this project reflects community spirit and deserves to be considered fairly, just like any other form of public art.
Apologies if I got this wrong, do you have the official statement to this?
Some towns will get artist to create art around the town and generate an art trail with an official route. I have seen these accepted multiple times so would see no difference if these where official.
Again, apologies if I have mis-understood the criteria.
@AparticleArtist I like your community project. Someone local to me has done something similar in a park (no idea who, unlikely game related)
Since youre in conversation about making it official, it may be that in future there is documention for example a web link, social post etc and you could try again with this as supporting evidence.
I think its unfair that you’ve been told this is abuse since you didnt start this with wayfarer in mind and your community want the project expanded and seem to be pleased with it
Maybe it would grow to feature larger pieces of artwork and those could be considered (and may be easier wayfarer wise) for example murals?
Thank you so much — your comment really means a lot.
You’re absolutely right: I didn’t start this with Wayfarer in mind. It began as a spontaneous community project and turned into something that brought people in the neighborhood together. After the first tile was placed, we received verbal approval from the municipality, and we’re hoping to follow up after the summer to get something in writing.
For now, we’re sticking with painted tiles — they’re manageable in terms of time and materials. I’m also a registered artist with the Chamber of Commerce, so who knows… maybe someone sees the tiles and it leads to a commission someday!
Thanks again for your support and for approaching this with such a thoughtful mindset.
There are examples of projects with more local relevance, funded and placed by city hall, that have been removed because the wayfarer team doesn’t accept tile wayspots: Removed gyms - Wijchen The Netherlands
I’m sure there is more to find if you hit the search button.
Thanks for the example, but I don’t think a single case — even involving a removed gym — should automatically disqualify every painted tile everywhere.
There’s a big difference between something that’s been forgotten or randomly placed, and a community-supported project that’s actively maintained and has verbal approval from the municipality. Not every tile is the same, and they shouldn’t all be treated as if they are.
If Wayfarer intends to exclude all tiles by default, that should be clearly stated in the criteria — not left to vague interpretations or assumptions. Until then, I believe each submission deserves to be judged on its own merits.
The point is, these tiles were installed and funded by the city of Wijchen. It was an art project to remember the local dialect (which has almost completely fallen out of use). There is an official route and folder which can be found at the local library. Despite all the official evidence for the tiles they were still removed, even though you could argue they meet acceptance criteria.
I searched around for the official statement made by wayfarer staff but sadly, that was back on the old forum, so I can’t link it anymore.
Even if the tiles do get accepted by the community, there is no point to them if the staff instanty removes them if they get reported. I agree a clear statement by the wayfarer staff on self made tiles would be great!
I do still wonder if there’s room for nuance here. There seems to be a big difference between random home-made items placed without context, and community-driven art initiatives that have local support and visibility — especially when created by a registered artist and supported by neighbours and the municipality.
In my case, I am a professional artist registered with the Chamber of Commerce, and the project was born out of a genuine wish to bring colour and connection to the neighbourhood. We’ve even received verbal support from municipal staff, with the intention to formalize it after the summer.
What I find somewhat concerning is that the response from the Wayfarer team does not seem entirely neutral or based on an objective assessment of the full context. By echoing the forum user’s request without further elaboration or openness to discussion, it gives the impression that the judgment is already made, without truly engaging with the circumstances or possible merits of such local initiatives.
Would the Wayfarer team be open to reconsidering such cases if supporting documentation (like an official site or municipal endorsement) becomes available later? Right now, it feels like such context is easily dismissed, and decisions fall largely to forum members who may not always remain neutral or constructive.
More transparency and openness to context from the Wayfarer team would be appreciated, especially when community-supported art is involved.
If that is true, why do you submit a picture of that tile minutes after it being installed, the sand of putting it in is still in that picture?
Please continue brightening up your neighborhood as Dutch neighborhoods are usually without color, so I really love the initiative to brighten it up. But please keep that separated from Wayfarer.
@NianticAaron has been very clear doing this to impact the gameboard is a no go. Other initiatives brought up by other posters here can be beneficial, but always make sure that those are official projects, which often are reported in local media, to cite in your supporting text.
I understand the concern, but taking a photo shortly after installation does not mean the project is not meaningful or community-driven. The tile was created with input from neighbors and in verbal collaboration with municipal staff, and more formal documentation is already in progress.
I would argue that dismissing such initiatives solely based on timing or lack of a press release risks undermining genuine local efforts. Especially when the primary goal is to bring visibility and color to overlooked areas, and the artistic work is done by someone officially registered as an artist.
The idea that a project has to be reported in local media to be valid feels unnecessarily rigid. Community art often starts small. Shouldn’t Wayfarer encourage authentic, grassroots efforts rather than shut them down?
Buying an stencil from the market and painting tiles to make them Pokestops is not art. If you’re an artist, submit art. I refuse to view these as art.
If your neighbours are cool with this art, good for you. I view them as nothing more than vandalism.
So, if I design and build my own Little Free Library station and install it in public with municipal approval, it should be rejected or removed from Wayfarer (as home-made), but if I purchase and assemble a commercial kit for the same installation it could be acceptable?
I can understand litmus tests for portability, permanence, and official approval, but don’t know how to test for an original object’s place of origin.
I understand that everyone is entitled to their own opinion on what qualifies as art, and I respect that. However, I do want to clarify that this wasn’t simply a stencil bought from a store and randomly applied.
As a registered artist, I designed these tiles myself and hand-painted them with care and intention — no stencil was used. If you believe this was created with a store-bought stencil, I would kindly ask you to provide evidence of where this specific design is being sold, because it’s my original work.
The project was carried out in collaboration with neighbors and has verbal support from the municipality. The goal was — and remains — to bring color and identity to the neighborhood in a meaningful way. We hope to formalize the initiative later this year.
Of course, art is subjective. What one sees as vandalism, another may see as local engagement and creative community-building. I just hope the discussion can leave room for context, nuance, and respect for different perspectives.
You stated that the primary goal of your art project was bringing colour to the neighbourhood and that wayfarer was merely an afterthought. I think the point @iFrankmans made is your nominating directly after placing them shows otherwise.
