Artist’s dreamlike city in the Catskills wilderness for sale

Two hours north of New York City in the misty Catskill Mountains, a tiny city is hidden in the forest. 

Built from discarded timber and pieces of junk, the village is made up of 30 cabins and sculptures that have been crafted by hand. 

It’s the creation of Matt Bua, an artist and builder who is passionate about rethinking society’s relationship with waste. 

Bua bought the woodland site in two stages from 2006 to 2008. Over the years that followed, he and his friends built dozens of recycled structures across the woodland plot, in a project he dubbed ‘b-home’. 

“People work too hard to obtain and maintain their super-sized lifestyles, while the really precious things in their lives are too often forgotten,” Bua says on his website. 

“It is that stuff – having grown old and having become clutter – that needs to be recycled into something new, something revealed, something useful. From that purged material may be built a structure that serves as both portraiture and shelter.” 

Now, after nearly 20 years under Bua’s custodianship, ‘b-home’ is ready to pass onto a new set of buyers. 

The property is for sale for $US269,000 ($AU422,000). It comes with over 26 acres of woodland, a babbling brook, and ancient stone walls. 

Snowy mountain peaks can be seen in the distance, and the site is just a short drive away from the town of Catskill. 

Owners are not allowed to live on the property year-round, but it’s an ideal spot for back-to-nature holidays and camping trips. 

Agent Angela Lanuto has already received interest from curators and artists from New York City and the West Coast. 

“They’ve been following Matt’s work, and they are interested in being a part of what he’s done and taking over the stewardship of it,” she tells the New York Post. 

Bua, who lives with his family on a nearby farm, feels ready to let the project go. 

“I guess I can’t be attached to really what they’re going to do to it, right? Because that’s always the process. Somebody takes it over and then edits and selects and improves,” he says.