Outside, it’s just a low door leading somewhere underground. And inside there is everything you need for a comfortable, but no frills, life.
Meet Dan Price, a musician, photojournalist and desperate downshifter. You still have to look for such a minimalist: Dan abandoned city life, bought himself a plot of more than two hectares of land and began to equip his home there. First it was a tent, then a wigwam, a wicker hut, then a shed with a tiled roof, and then Dan set about making a whole network of underground structures. Now it is a multi-room dugout with a bedroom, studio, shower and even a sauna.
Dan Price calls himself a “neohobbit” – the man does not hide that the creation of the underground mansion was inspired by “The Lord of the Rings”, based on the famous novel by J. J. Tolkien.
The rooms are not dark – the light enters through the window made in the roof of the dugout. However, the modern hobbit did not give up electricity. He has a copier, a telephone with an answering machine, a CD-player, he uses social networks and, accordingly, the Internet.
Between the rooms, you need to move through tiny round doors that look more like portholes. The furniture is as simple as possible: there are no wardrobes or dressers, clothes are hanging on hooks.
“I can reach everything from sitting in the middle of the room,” Price says.
- Photo Shoot:
- still from video Kirsten Dirksen
By the way, the underground mansion is quite cozy: rugs, paintings on the walls, warm plank walls.
“I plan to switch from electricity to propane to be completely autonomous,” adds Dan.
A man lives on about $ 100 a month, which is even less than the average Russian pension. He makes money by publishing his own drawing magazine about minimalistic life. Subscribers get the magazine for $ 5 apiece. There are only about a hundred subscribers, but Dan is not chasing popularity. And he has been publishing the magazine since 1992. Sometimes he moonlights – mows lawns.
In his free time, he draws, walks, hikes and bicycles, plays an unusual musical instrument – hang.
“People have built their lives to be slaves. They work a lot, and often for very little money. But in fact, a person only needs a piece of land and a source of fresh water in order to live a full life. I spend very little time at work for the sake of money. And I don’t just survive – I do what I really enjoy, ”says Dan.