Romare Bearden Park, Charlotte, Visitor Guide & Things to Do Nearby

Romare Bearden Park is a public green space in uptown Charlotte, North Carolina, named for the artist Romare Bearden, who was born in the city in 1911. It gives the dense towers of the business district a lawn, gardens and a place to sit, and it carries the name of one of the great American collage artists.

The story behind it

Romare Bearden was born in Charlotte and became known for collages and paintings that draw on Black life in the American South, in Harlem and in the Caribbean. He is one of the best-known artists in the country, and Charlotte chose to honor him by naming this park after him in the middle of the city.

The park sits in the heart of uptown, next to the Truist Field ballpark, and works as a front lawn for the neighborhood. Its design takes cues from Bearden's art, so it is worth treating as a small open-air gallery as well as a place to rest between streets.

What to look for

• Look for the artwork and patterns across the park that echo Bearden's collage style, built from layers, color and fragments.
• Notice the water feature and the planted garden areas, which soften the glass and steel around them.
• Walk to the edge of the lawn and look up at the uptown skyline, which frames the park on several sides.
• Glance across to the ballpark beside the park and see how the two spaces share the same corner of the city.

Tips for your visit

• Plan on 20 to 30 minutes to walk the park and read the artwork, longer if you want to sit with a coffee.
• Go in the morning or late afternoon, when the light is softer and the lawn is less hot in summer.
• It is an open-air public park, so there is nothing to go inside. Check current opening hours if you need exact times.
• It is a short walk from the rest of uptown, so it pairs easily with other stops on foot.

See it on a quest

Charlotte Detective Mystery: Infiltrate a Secret Society. is a good way to see the park as one stop on a longer walk through uptown. You reach each place on foot, the app tells you about it as you arrive, and you solve a puzzle on the spot. It is a paid quest, and one ticket covers the whole group.

Murder Mystery: Death in the Shadows in Charlotte suits you if you like a darker mood in your sightseeing. You walk between places in the area, hear about each one in the app, and work out a puzzle in front of you. It is paid, and one ticket covers the whole group.

Dorothy’s Quest: The Trials of Oz in Charlotte gives the streets around the park a storybook theme. You follow the route on foot, learn about each stop as you get there, and solve a puzzle along the way. It is paid, and one ticket covers the whole group.