Picture Romare Bearden, one of the most important American artists of the twentieth century, born just a few blocks from this park that now carries his name. Romare Bearden was born in Charlotte in 1911, though his family moved to Harlem when he was a child, and he grew up to become the master of collage, creating layered, luminous works that drew on jazz, African-American life, classical mythology, and the visual traditions of both Europe and Africa. His mosaic and collage technique — cutting and reassembling found images into something entirely new — became one of the defining artistic approaches of his era.
The park, opened in 2013, replaced a surface parking lot with lawns, fountains, and public art that includes imagery drawn from Bearden's own work. On a warm afternoon this is one of the most pleasant public spaces in uptown, a green respite surrounded by towers. The park's creation reflects Charlotte's effort to reclaim its relationship with a world-famous artist the city had long underacknowledged.
Look for the mosaic installations and water features that carry Bearden's visual vocabulary into the landscape.