Cave dwellings and artists' colony in Noszvaj

If there's only one thing that gets you out of the BlackBox House, it's a visit to the Cave Dwellings in Noszvaj! The past and present of one of the greatest attractions of Bükkkalja, the meeting of tradition and contemporary art will enchant you, we guarantee it!

The past of the cave dwellings

From the 17th century until the 1970s, cellar houses carved out of the cavities of a former quarry were also used as dwellings. Poor families carved their own small, room-and-kitchen homes into the Rhyolite tuff walls. They made sure to design the 'buildings' to look like classic farmhouses. The walls of their rooms were neatly set at right angles, their facades were whitewashed, and the courtyards had barns.

As we mentioned in our article on wine tours, the old farmers also took advantage of the volcanic ash to build cellars and other storage rooms on the hillsides.

At one time, 30 percent of the population of Noszvaj lived in such cave dwellings. In 1930, still 70 families lived there, and it was only in the 1990s that it was completely depopulated.

A new era

After that, the Farkaskő Artists' Association took over the area. They excavated the cave dwellings, cleared away the rubbish that had accumulated over the decades and created the contemporary art centre.

The artists excavated buried courtyards, cut paths, built gable walls and carved new interiors. They have created exciting spaces that are also home to international art camps. A good example of their creativity is the 8 metres long and 2 metres wide music room, which functions as a sound bath using the human body as a musical instrument.

A visit to the cave dwellings (Farkaskő Artists' Village):
Address: 5325 Noszvaj, Honvéd utca
Opening hours: 10.00 - 18.00
Tickets: adults 700 HUF/person, children (6-18 years) 500 HUF/person
Website: https://symposion.hu/muvesztelepek/farkasko-noszvaji-barlang-muvesztelep/

If you look for a lasting experience of Noszvaj, get inside the special walls carved into the hillside, wander around the stone garden, admire the sculptures and modern artworks among the fruit trees!