Hidden Marks: Trigpoints, Benchmarks & Beyond

While exploring Newcastle and Gateshead, I started noticing small, colourful mosaics tucked away on walls, street corners, and even the sides of buildings. These are the works of the French street artist Invader, who creates ceramic tiles inspired by 8-bit video game characters and hides them in cities all over the world. Each piece, often called an ‘Invader,’ is part of a global project that turns public spaces into a kind of open-air arcade. Discovering them feels like a treasure hunt — some are easy to spot, while others are cleverly concealed in plain sight. The Invaders I’ve found across Newcastle and Gateshead link the region to this playful worldwide game, where every tile is both a piece of art and a nod to digital culture.