This Artist and Designer’s Philly Rowhome Has Awesome Gallery Walls

Adrienne Breaux
·13 min read
Blue card catalog cabinet and art-filled wall in living room.
Leather couch anchors seating area with art-filled wall in living room.
Gallery wall features vintage art, photographs, and accessories.
White living room is decorated with rust, orange, and red furniture and accessories.
Bar area in corner of white living room.
Tile tops wood coffee table in living room.
Tray lays on wood coffee table with tile top in living room.
White tulip table is seen in view of dining area from living room.
Cowhide rug is laid under tulip table in dining area.
Bold signage art hangs on white wall behind tulip table in dining area.
Dweller holds cat in white room with bold signage art.
View of white kitchen with corner work space.
Lockers flank wood work table in white room.
Wooden work table and wall shelves decorated with vintage items are seen in white room.
Sign hangs above green metal lockers in work area.
White oven and refrigerator are set amongst wood cabinetry in kitchen.
Storage cart holds colorful cookware in white kitchen.
Cat strolls aside striped runner in white hallway.
Light reflects off disco ball in white bedroom with rust accents.
A disco ball hangs from stand in white bedroom with rust accents.
Art is hung on wall next to bed with earth tone bedding.
Corner view of white bedroom shows wood dresser and chair.
Guitars hang on wall of white room with daybed.
A gallery wall with colorful artwork is seen in white room.
Guitars hang on wall in white room with workspace and daybed.
Minty blue storage piece holds paint and art items in white room.
Round mirror hangs on wall above sink with blue cabinet in bathroom with orange accents.
Potted plant sits in corner of white bathroom with blue tub and orange accents.
Art featuring Jeff Koons balloon dog hangs on white wall.

“My house and I found each other when we needed each other most,” begins Mitch Wiesen, an artist and designer. “Back in 2018 I met a girl, we fell in love, and we decided to move from South Philly to Kentucky. A few years and a whole lot of heartbreak later, we were staring down an impending divorce.”

Dweller holds cat in white room with bold signage art.

“The day we decided to end things was the last day any tears fell for that failed marriage — I immediately opened my laptop, typed in zillow.com, and applied for three rowhomes in South Philly, sight unseen. The home I’m in now was one of those three rowhomes. And when I arrived 10 days later, the house welcomed me (and my air mattress) with open arms.”

Cat walks under chair near wooden staircase.

The home, which Wiesen shares with cats, Fish and Grandpa, is located in South Philadelphia’s East Passyunk. “Some friends disparagingly call my neighborhood ‘The Cheesesteak District’ due to its close proximity to two warring cheesesteak spots, Pat’s and Geno’s, which are adored by tourists and despised by locals in near equal amounts. (Personally, if I’m looking for a quick walk and a great steak, I’m going to Cosmi’s, and I’m ordering it ‘wiz wit.’),” Wiesen admits.

Corner view of wooden work table and wall shelves.

Wiesen currently works as a senior designer at the employee-owned agency Truth & Consequences, and is the founder of the small font foundry, Deli Fresh Type Co. They’re also an adjunct professor in typography at the Tyler School of Art & Architecture, as well as a “community taught tattooer, freelance illustrator, occasional printmaker, wannabe interior designer, and a long-time lover of overly lengthy lists.”

Dweller holds cat in white bedroom with light scattered on wall.

And when it comes to the rowhome and its design, they completely threw themselves into “loving this old house. I ripped down the cheap vinyl wall mural of misty mountain trees in the second bedroom. I cleaned, and I caulked, and I painted, and I replaced old rusty hardware, and the house and I settled into loving each other.”

Cat naps on red rug.

Wiesen admits that the house needed “a pretty serious helping hand” when they first moved in. “Most rooms could be improved with some scrubbing and a fresh coat of paint, but the bathroom was in need of the most help by far. It came with off-white ’80s tile; rusted-over light fixtures; mismatched hardware made of brass, chrome, wood, and plastic; and, best of all, a blue ’50s tub.”

Resources

Blue card catalog cabinet is placed at doorway of living area.

ENTRY

  • Card Catalog — Jinxed, Philadelphia

  • Talavera Tile & Tin Mirror — The Antique Warehouse, NJ

  • M.A. Hadley Ceramic Horse Plate — Crazy Daisy Vintage (permanently closed), Louisville

  • Horseshoe Catchall Dish — Fleur De Flea, Louisville

  • Candle Holders — Yesternook Vintage, Louisville

  • Ceramic Hand — Goodwill

  • Wood Magazine Holder — Fillmore Vintage (permanently closed), Kansas City

  • Tortoiseshell Vase — Goodwill

  • Floral Arrangement — Fruitcake Flowers

  • Arched Floor Mirror — Facebook Marketplace

  • Green Metal Bucket — Retrospect Vintage, Philadelphia

  • Checkered Beni Ourain Rug — BoujaadcarpetsArt

Blue card catalog cabinet is set off in neutral living room with rust and orange accents.

LIVING ROOM

  • Leather Sofa — Poly & Bark

  • Utility Cart Side Table — Retrospect Vintage, Philadelphia

  • Red White & Blue Roller Skate Case — Retrospect Vintage, Philadelphia

  • Orange Nesso Lamp — Etsy

  • Ceramic Thumbs Up — The Neon Flea, Louisville

  • Amber Glass Ashtray — Yesternook Vintage, Louisville

  • Berber Moroccan Rug — CarpetsAbdelhadi

  • Coffee Table — Refurbished FBMP

  • Teak Tray — GreatHouse, New Jersey

  • Porcelain Hands Ashtray — Stickball, Philadelphia

  • Billiard Ball — GreatHouse, New Jersey

  • Marble Canister — FBMP

  • Amber Jars — FBMP

  • Dalmation Box — Seek & Find, Louisville

  • Gold Grinder — Sackville & Co.

  • Crochet Blanket — Oddballs Nifty Thrift, Florida

  • Green Velvet Cantilever Chair — FBMP

  • Milk Crates — FBMP

  • Locker Room Bench — FBMP

  • Chrome Cube Pipe — Laundry Day

  • Nemadji Pottery — FBMP

  • Buster (taxidermied chipmunk) — by Sarah Jane Moore

  • Black Grecian Bust — Jinxed, Philadelphia

  • Blanket Rack — Chick’s Discount Saddlery 

  • Bar Sconce Light — FBMP

  • Antique Philco Radio — FBMP

  • Shelves — Handmade

  • Select Glassware — Tim’s Picks, Cincinnati

  • Spirits, Syrups & Bitters — Art in the Age, Philadelphia

Gallery wall features vintage art, photographs, and accessories.

ART:

  • No Smoking Enamel Sign — Stickball, Philadelphia

  • Small etchings — Unknown Artist, Mexico

  • Pointing Wooden Hand — Thunderbird Salvage, Philadelphia

  • “M” Marquee Letters — Fleur De Flea, Louisville

  • World Peace Weaving — Gaudmother

  • Industrial Safety Pin — FBMP

  • “Super” Car Ornament — Stickball, Philadelphia

  • Nelson Eye Clock — Lifted From My Mother’s House

  • Brass Cowboy Hat — Velvet Goldmine, Chicago

  • Painting of a Woman Reclining — Made by Me

  • Star face etching — Made by Me

  • TI-O-GA Feedbag — Joys Antiques, Pennsylvania

  • Have A Nice Day Tray — FBMP

  • Antique Sock Stretcher — Stickball, Philadelphia

  • Kandinsky Needlepoint — Made by My Great-Grandmother, Ida

  • Portrait Photograph — My Great-Grandmother Ida

  • Pen Drawing of a Tree — Made by My Mom

  • “One Day Dry Cleaning” Sign — Obscura Antiques (permanently closed), NYC

  • Small house weaving — Brownsville Antique Center

  • Flower Vase Painting — Made by Me

  • 45 LP — Found in the bottom of an FBMP dresser

  • Lou Rawls Poster — Antique Village, Long Beach Island

  • Rodeo Pennant — Vice & Graft, New Orleans

  • Paintbrush — FBMP

  • Giampolini Back Patch — Squirrel Vintage

  • Ladies Sign — Vice & Graft, New Orleans

Cowhide rug is laid under tulip table in dining area.

DINING ROOM

  • Saarinen Tulip Dining Table — Jinxed, Philadelphia

  • Heywood Wakefield High School Chairs — FBMP

  • Cowhide Rug — FBMP

  • Mid-Century Credenza — Love City Vintage, Philadelphia

  • Woven Bamboo Tray — Yesternook Vintage, Louisville

  • Cylindrical Vase — West Elm

  • Flower Arrangements — Fruitcake Flowers

  • Ceramic Vase — Urban Mining, Kansas City

  • Wall Mount Vinyl Storage — Hudson HiFi

  • Record Player — IKEA

  • Amp — FBMP

  • Large Ceramic Hand — Low Timers, New Orleans

  • Nemadji Pottery — FBMP

  • Miller’s Pretzels Tin — Jinxed, Philadelphia

  • Iron Hand Curtain Tieback — Eyes Gallery, Philadelphia

  • Open Weave Curtain — VntgStylStore

  • Texas Weiners Signs — Found

  • Light Bulb Pendant Light — ChezlManouche

View of white kitchen with corner work space.

KITCHEN

  • Butcher Block Table — FBMP

  • Fincken Etching Press — Shelley Thorstensen

  • Shelves — Handmade

  • Wall Caddy — A Four Foot Prune, Philadelphia

  • Enamelware — A Four Foot Prune, Philadelphia

  • Graniteware — Tickled Pink Antique Mall, Louisville

  • Colorful Soup Crocks — Goodwill

  • Wiesen’s Bakeshop photograph — My great grandfather’s bakery, with the family outside, taken sometime in the 1920s

  • Firesafe Cabinet — Ebay

  • Obey Poster — by Shepard Fairey (Purchased with my Bat Mitzvah money in 2009)

  • Chrome and Leather Stool — Yesternook Vintage, Louisville

  • School Lockers — FBMP

  • Marquee Sign — FBMP

  • Donut Shop Sign — Antique Village, Long Beach Island

  • Bachman Pretzel Tin — FBMP

  • Rug — A Four Foot Prune, Philadelphia

  • Stainless Serving Cart — Fantes Kitchen Shop

  • Nelson Bubble Lamp — My 11th Birthday Gift

Light reflects off disco ball in white bedroom with rust accents.

BEDROOM

Corner view shows graphic arts work area and guitars hung on wall in white room.

OFFICE

  • Green Watchmakers Desk — ​Thunderbird Salvage

  • Tubular Stool — Betsu Studio

  • Zine Rack — Displays2Go

  • Floor Lamp — FBMP

  • Daybed Frame — IKEA

  • Quilt — 80s Crate & Barrel

  • Wood Machinist Cabinet — FBMP

  • Kids Camp Trunk — FBMP

  • Rug — FBMP

  • South Philly Dives poster — Made by me

  • Record Sticker Poster — Made by me

  • Remaining Risograph Posters — Sunroom Monthly Flyers Club

Corner view of white bathroom with orange accents and checkerboard floor.

BATHROOM

  • Shower Curtain — West Elm

  • Bath Mat — West Elm

  • Mirror — Amazon

  • Shelf — Amazon

  • Light Fixture — Lowes

  • Towel Ring — Lowes

  • Towel Racks — Lowes

  • Toilet Paper Holder — Lowes

  • Sewing Cabinet — FBMP

  • Cuban Poster — Unknown, purchased in Cuba

  • Bathing Woman Art — Unknown Artist, Mexico

Thanks, Mitch!

This tour’s responses and photos were edited for length/size and clarity.

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