The City of Charlotte, NC

In the course of our recent travels to the southeastern United States, we spent 3 nights/2 days in Charlotte, North Carolina. Rolande and I shared our experiences with Pat and Barry Stewart in the Uptown section of the city, taking in the sights, visiting local attractions and savouring the local cuisine.

Charlotte is a major city and commercial hub in North Carolina. It is a prominent financial centre, home to several large banks and recognized as the second largest financial centre in the nation, ranking only behind New York City. Uptown is also known for several museums, a thriving cultural community and the NASCAR Hall of Fame, which celebrates the sport of auto racing.

My photographs today focus on the architecture primarily and notably the majestic skyscrapers that dominate the city core, including 29 that top a height of 300 ft. (91 metres).

I begin with Charlotte Plaza, photographed from our hotel room window. I always like a full glass exterior, mirroring the surrounding buildings.

One of the Museums we visited, the Bechtler Museum of Modern Art is a very interesting building with its modern exterior reflecting the content of its interior. The sculpture in front, the firebird statue depicts a bird-like creature sitting on a large arch. Very modern!

One of the more appealing buildings in my view is the Hearst Tower, home to the service centre for the Hearst Corporation, a major publishing company.

Another impressive skyscraper is the Bank of America Corporate Center, Charlotte’s tallest building at 60 stories, 871 ft (265 m) in height.

The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) is headquartered in Charlotte, where in addition to its corporate offices it also boasts an impressive museum, celebrating its history and honouring its driving heroes over its 69 year existence. Most of NASCAR’S racing teams also call Charlotte home with their home base garages located in the surrounding area. The museum building is another example of the city’s array of striking architecture.

A more traditional form of architecture is embodied in the classic design of the St. Peter’s Episcopal Church, located in the Uptown district of the city. The eye is drawn at this time of year to the compelling colours of the church’s beautiful landscaping.

In the plaza just outside our hotel I was attracted to this fountain. I suppose you could call it an element of the hotel’s architecture.

One last skyscraper, referred to by its street address rather than a name. I chose it not so much for its aesthetic appeal but for the photographic challenge. In a jungle of skyscrapers, shadows become a formidable factor and this building was seriously shadowed. I chose to combine three images, identical but for their exposures to produce this composite that better represents what the human eye can see.

Charlotte has earned the status of one of our favourite cities to visit.