Artist Lists Ramshackle Off-Grid Retreat in the Catskills Wilderness for $269K

An off-grid upstate New York sanctuary built over two decades by the installation artist Matt Bua was put on the market this month, Gothamist and Artnet reported.

For just $269,000, buyers can obtain nearly 27 acres of woodlands dressed with more than 30 DIY structures made of upcycled scrap materials. Located in a hollow near the town of Catskill, the sculpture park is an amalgamation of creations made by Bua and friends. 

The repurposed city consists of bizarre, fairy-tale-like structures, including a tower lined with LP shingles, a bear made out of weaved barbed wire, a tudor-style church and a bunker made out of dirt-filled bags. 

Bua told The Post in 2023 that he found the plot of land in a Pennysaver in 2006 while he was living in Brooklyn. He bought the lot for just $33,000. He tacked on an adjacent parcel later on. Bua dubbed the project “b-home Studio.”

Now, it all stands to be in new hands.

Both parcels were listed for sale this month by real estate agents Ioanis “John” Iconomou and Angela Lanuto at Coldwell Banker Village Green Realty. 

“Not only are you getting two parcels of land, but you’re also getting what this artist did over an accumulation of over 20 years,” Lanuto said. “20 years of creating this magical living structure.”

Lanuto called it “a little village under the trees,” that includes replicas of a church and a library, all using recycled materials. The property also offers breathtaking views of Vedder Mountain.

Lanuto said she’s already received interest from potential buyers — local curators, downstate buyers and west coast artists have all reached out about the property. 

“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,” Lanuto said. 

As of now, however, the land is not permitted for full-time habitation.

“If somebody wanted to live in those buildings, they would then have to go to the town of Catskill and get the proper permits and do that,” Lanuto said.

His time on the land inspired Bua to research the pre-colonial histories of the Northeast’s famed stone walls, which culminated in his 2015 book, “Talking Walls: Casting out the Post-Contact Stone-Wall Building Myth.”

“I guess I can’t be attached to really what they’re going to do to it, right?” Bua said, speaking to The Post about the sale. “Because that’s always the process. Somebody takes it over and then edits and selects and improves. So I’m excited just about the transference of energy.”

Although Bua did spend some time living off-grid on the property, he now lives full-time with his family in the nearby hamlet of Palenville on a 2-acre farm. Bua told The Post that he’s deep into researching Rip Van Winkle and Washington Irving now, and he recently begun a “mobile time traveling Rip Van Winkle museum.”

“I think for him, it’s just time,” Lanuto said. “I think the stars aligned, and the energy was right, and he meditated on it and was like, ‘You know what, I feel it’s ready to go to that next level with somebody else.’”