However, despite their Los Angeles connections, the award-winning actors live a rural life on a 50-acre plot in New York’s Sullivan County. And on the couple’s front porch? A carved bear. In an interview with NOWNESS (opens in new tab), in which the keen environmentalist introduced readers to the objects that decorate his front porch – Mark Ruffalo shared that his friend Forest Myers (opens in new tab) made the carved bear that stands as a talking point outside his home. ‘He lives in the area, and he’s a fairly significant American modern sculptor in his 60s who was basically our first friend up here,’ the actor says. ‘Eventually, it found its way into one of Sunrise’s little “living collages”, which is what you see on the front porch.’ Myers is most known for his pieces Moon Museum (opens in new tab) (1969) and The Wall (opens in new tab) (1973), the latter of the two is a monumental wall sculpture in SoHo, New York City. Next to the bear, Mark describes a ‘root chair,’ also designed by a local artist who makes furniture out of found wood and other objects that may have otherwise gone to waste. A photo posted by on ‘There’s an old-fashioned milk canister that’s filled with walking sticks that Sunny got at a garage sale,’ Mark adds. ‘We [also] have turkey feathers and deer bones the kids have found on the property.’ Beyond the porch and the front yard, Ruffalo’s estate comes with a vegetable garden, more carved wooden animal sculptures, and an eco house suitable for guests. A photo posted by on The actor chose to live in a small space, almost completely influenced by the natural world around the family, surrounded by the Catskill Mountains. ‘There’s a lot of quiet in the country, and there’s a lot of quietness in my children,’ the actor says. In this case, we think the bear sculpture is entirely fitting.
