A New Life: Fiona Tyrrell meets a man who has used his home to help him develop two very different careers
Everybody should change career at least once, according to Mark Keogh, who left the army to run an upmarket guesthouse with his wife, Dee, and now runs the Norman Villa Gallery, in Salthill, Galway.
While the jump from army life to the art world may seem somewhat unusual, the key, according to Mark, was the decision to purchase a period townhouse in the early 1980s, which allowed the couple to change their careers not once but twice.
For Clonmel-born Mark, who represented Ireland in judo and weightlifting and was a member of the FCA in his youth, a career in the army was the obvious choice. After studying in University College Galway as a cadet, where he met Dee, he was "lucky enough" to be posted to the first battalion in Galway.
Aside from a stint in the Lebanon and some time spent in Athlone and the Border, he was based in Galway, where Dee was working as a teacher.
The couple had a keen shared interest in antiques and when their small terraced home in Shantalla became too small to house their collection, the hunt for a larger home started.
After a spell in a rented apartment, the couple settled on a handsome Victorian townhouse in Lower Salthill in need of some serious renovation. "We spent a number of years and all our money doing it up," explains Mark.
When the house was finally complete and the couple's antique collection and emerging art collection installed, Dee, who was then working as a patient relation officer with the Western Health Board, wanted a change of career. The house provided the answer and she decided to try her hand at the accommodation game.
Norman Villa guesthouse opened up for Galway's famous Race Week in 1988 and quickly established a good reputation in the high-end guesthouse sector. The business expanded, with the couple adding en suites to a total of five guest bedrooms.
In time, Mark decided to leave the army to work with Dee in the guesthouse. The business proved to be a full-time job for both of them, with the guesthouse open from February to November as well as Christmas.
"It was a very busy business. One of us had to be on duty at all times. People are quite demanding, even late into the night, early morning or even during the night.
"At the time we were in our 40s and we began to look at our situation and we realised that we didn't want to be doing this in 10 years' time."
After 13 years in the business the couple began to look for an alternative and again the house was "the key", according to Mark.
"We both loved art and had built up connections with artists in Ireland so we began to probe around with a view to opening a gallery in the house."
After a bit of research, they concluded Galway needed another gallery and their house could be transformed into a successful art space.
The brave decision called for another overhaul of the house. En suites were removed, a full lighting system was installed, furniture was put in storage and the walls were decked out in gallery white paint.
The house, which probably dates from around the 1840s, is Victorian, but feels more Georgian with little evidence of Victorian embellishments, according to Mark. The square rooms, high ceilings and lack of Victorian adornments to distract the eye make it an ideal place to view art, he says. The fact that it is still a house with some pieces of furniture lying around rather than a purpose-built gallery makes the viewer more at ease, he adds.
The decision to open a gallery in a house off the beaten track has paid off for the couple and business is going well. The big plus of having a gallery in your own home is that you have the luxury of a changing art landscape all the time, Mark says.
The gallery's first exhibition was during the Galway Arts Festival in 2004 with a show by painters Brian Bourke and Jane Murphy. Since then the gallery has had 11 exhibitions showcasing the work of established and emerging Irish artists including Sean Cotter, Tim Moran, Lisa Sweeney and, most recently, Michael Kane. The decision to open a gallery was a mix of courage and common business sense, according to Mark.
"People in their mid 40s tend to lean towards what they enjoy doing. It's a time when you have to be brave and make a decision, otherwise you'll spend the rest of your life ticking the boxes. With two of us involved, it was a real jump into the unknown. The fact that we have no children allowed for a bit more bravery than others," he explains.
"The point I always make to people considering doing something similar is to ask yourself how you will feel in 10 years' time if you keep doing something you are not happy with."
Norman Villa Gallery, 86 Lower Salthill, Galway, will showcase the work of over 20 established and up-and-coming Irish artists including Brian Bourke, Tony O'Malley, John Behan and Ann Maire Fives in a group show opening on Thursday, August 4th. Tel: 091 521131 for further information.