Photograph courtesy Nicole Mersmann
Are you tired of having the same mass-produced art as every other HomeGoods shopper? Has that blank wall been staring at you for ages, mocking your attempts at trying and failing to find the perfect decor?
Help may be just a click away. Nicole Mersmann, vintage art collector and dealer at Archived Interiors, is a big believer in making original art accessible and affordable for everyone and strives to offer pieces that fit a range of budgets via her Instagram page and website.
Although not an artist herself, Mersmann always had a passion for interior design and art collection, thanks to a childhood spent scouring garage sales and auctions with her mom to source unique and unusual art.
Photograph courtesy Nicole Mersmann
While initially, she collected art to fill her home and gift her friends, the passion for “a good treasure hunt” slowly began to turn into a side hustle that continued to grow. Around her 40th birthday in 2023, Mersmann realized the hobby was consuming all her time, and that she needed to make a choice: stick to her day job or go all in and sell art full time.
Now, her days are spent researching artists, looking at online auctions, and driving to estate sales to find original art she likes, which she then buys and sells (or keeps for herself).
“For me it’s not a learned thing—how do you learn taste? It’s something that’s kind of unique and acquired,” explains Mersmann. “I don’t pick paintings based on who signed them [or] that may be famous one day. I pick pieces for my collection based on my gut feeling [and] I love finding local artists.”
“I’m hunting for undiscovered artists, ones that aren’t household names, and I love to tell the stories of these artists that people haven’t heard of before, figuring out what happened to them, what was their passion, why did they do what they do?”
Sometimes the artist “rabbit holes” that she enters take her to estate sales and auctions far out of town, including a time when she fell in love with a Don Vogle painting at a Ft. Wayne, Indiana, estate sale. She looked him up and discovered the former associate professor emeritus of fine art at Notre Dame was now in his 90s and living in Ft. Collins, Colorado.
Photograph courtesy Nicole Mersmann
So enamored with his work, Mersmann arranged a visit, flying out to spend time with Vogle, discussing the art that filled his house, determining if she could afford it, and, most importantly, learning if he was willing to sell it. She ended up leaving after two days with 150 paintings and 1,000 pieces on paper, driving everything back by herself in a 12-foot rental truck.
Her deep dives also have taken her to the Gulf of Mississippi for the estate sale of painter and sculptor Gary Martin. If she can’t get there in person, she’ll have items from around the country and abroad shipped to her home.
Not sure where to start? Mersmann suggests looking at pieces online or visiting local galleries and museums to simply let yourself walk around and enjoy the art, noticing what types you’re drawn to, what colors you love, and what makes you interested in a certain piece or collection. Trust your gut instincts and use that as a jumping-off point. And, most importantly, remember it’s OK to pick out art for no other reason than just liking it.
“You’re not buying it for the people that come over to your house,: she says. “At the end of the day, you’re going to sit on your couch and stare at this piece for years and possibly even hand that painting down to the next generation [so] pick a piece that you’re drawn to.”
Photograph courtesy Nicole Mersmann
Although she sells her art via local events and sets up installations at women-owned businesses throughout the city, you’ll find most pieces for sale on her Instagram page, where she also offers shipping for out-of-town buyers.
If you’d like an in-person look at a certain piece, she invites you to stop by her Westwood home that also serves as a gallery, storage facility, and workshop, where her husband Andrew handcrafts unique wooden frames for her pieces out of his custom framing studio Grain & Gallery.
Looking for something specific? Mersmann says she’s always outsourcing new items (to the tune of a few pieces every day) and loves to source individual pieces for a buyer.
