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The Neverwas Haul is a three-story, self-propelled mobile art vehicle built to resemble a Victorian house on wheels. Inspired by the fantastical stories of Jules Verne and H.G. Wells, the Haul was designed by Shannon O’Hare and built by a crew of volunteers at the Shipyard art space in Berkeley, CA, in 2006. Originally intended to be a ‘mutant vehicle’ for the Burning Man art festival in Nevada, the Haul is made from 75% recycled materials, and measures 24 feet long, 24 feet high, and 12 feet wide. It is built on the base of a fifth-wheel trailer, and the second and third story of the structure pack down into the first for highway towing. When fully built and decked out for exhibition at Burning Man, the Haul is able to propel itself at a top speed of 5 miles per hour and requires a crew of ten people to operate safely (since Victorian houses are notoriously lacking in side- and rear-view mirrors). Currently, the Neverwas Haul makes her home at Obtainium Works, an “art car factory” in Vallejo, CA, owned by O’Hare and home to several other self-styled “contraptionists.”
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Steampunk Fiction and Art
The Haul is often associated with steampunk, a sub-cultural movement that draws its inspiration from a fusion of Victorian-era science fiction and contemporary technology. True to the alternative histories that are a staple of the steampunk genre, the Neverwas Haul has its origin story in a history that never was, a history in which the Hibernian Empire (not the British Empire) dominated the sociopolitical landscape of the nineteenth century—Hibernia being an obscure name for Ireland. In this mythology, the Neverwas Haul is the greatest of all the Hauls – gypsy vardo-like vehicles driven by Track Banshees – itinerant women who use their preternatural mechanical skills to keep their families on the move. The Haul is the primary mode of transport for the Traveling Academy of Unnatural Science, who seek to acculturate the heathens of the Black Rock Desert (where the Burning Man festival is held) by sharing such cultural staples as fine whiskey, Gin and Tonics, and high tea.
Accommodations
The Neverwas Haul consists of three major sections: engine room, command deck, and parlor. The engine room stores extra cargo and seats up to six people. The command deck is dominated by a full size ship's wheel for steering. The controls are a throttle for hydraulic control, and a dead man switch for emergency stops. The parlor is well apportioned: it has a bar, library, veranda, vintage stuffed chairs, and a camera obscura. There is even stairs to the "widows walk" which has a rooftop view. While many media sources cite the Neverwas Haul as an unusual RV or Winnebago, it is primarily a large overly detailed kinetic art piece.
Media Appearances
Outside of Burning Man, the Neverwas Haul is featured in books, TV and several music videos: