The Most Gorgeous Cave Home You've Ever Seen
Artist Ra Paulette sculpted this one-of-a-kind abode underground in New Mexico.
— -- While the idea of cave dwelling may conjure images of Fred Flintstone, one desert sculptor has created a home that rivals those above ground in architectural beauty.
Ra Paulette, a New Mexico-based artist and subject of the 2014 Oscar-nominated short documentary CaveDigger, has carved out sweeping halls and cathedral columns underground for years using a pick, wheelbarrow, and only his dog for company. Many of the caves are on private property, while others on public lands remain unmarked, unknown and uninhabited -- a happy surprise for hikers to stumble upon.
But one special hollow acts as a serene abode -- and even features electricity and running water.
Shel and Liz Neymark having been residing in their cave for the last 15 years. The home was recently profiled in Du Jour magazine.
Featuring skylights, built-in drums, bed platforms excavated into walls and beautiful carvings, the home was a labor of love on Paulette's part after Liz Neymark was diagnosed with advanced melanoma and breast cancer in 1997. Fortunately, she remains alive to this day.
Paulette could not immediately be reached by ABC News for comment. But the artist offers some explanation of his process on his website.
"When digging and excavating the caves I break down all the movements into their simplest parts and reassemble them into the most efficient patterns and strategies that will accomplish the task while maintaining bodily ease," Paulette wrote. "Like a dancer, I 'feel' the body and its movement in a conscious way."
He calls this step “the dance of digging.”
But if future home-owners are excited at the prospect of living in a cave in the style of the Neymark's home, they face a good possibility of disappointment.
For the last 20 years, Paulette has been working on a project called Luminous Caves, "a cave complex illuminated by the sun through multiple tunneled windows," he describes on his site. At 65, the artist said he considers the piece his final project.
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