![\"Andrea](\"https:\/\/www.trincoll.edu\/reporter\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/143\/2023\/09\/Andrea-Keogh-82.jpg\")
DEGREE:<\/h5>\nDEGREE:<\/h5>\nB.A. in history<\/p>\n
Gallery owner, Andrea S. Keogh Art & Design LLC<\/p>\n
The wonderful people I met. Many are still my closest friends. From my first days on campus, I was struck by how genuinely nice everyone was. My freshman and sophomore years, I coxed the women\u2019s varsity crew. We worked hard, had fun, and were undefeated. It was magical. The lessons learned on the river about teamwork and perseverance have informed my career and life.<\/p>\n
The summer after my junior year, I grappled with the question of what kind of a career I wanted to pursue. I wanted it to be interesting and to incorporate my passion for art, history, and travel. Walking past a gallery in Geneva, Switzerland, I had my epiphany. I\u2019ll become a gallerist!<\/p>\n
My Trinity class graduated in a recession. Thankfully, two alums, Deedee Look [\u201981] and Angela Vorder Bruegge Hudson [\u201980], both worked at Sotheby\u2019s and helped me get a summer internship. That fall, I was offered a full-time position, but I couldn\u2019t afford to take it. Citibank hired me for an administrative role in its pioneering Art Advisory Service. It was too corporate (I hail from a long line of entrepreneurs), and I went on to work for a number of private dealers and galleries in New York and London in the old master, British watercolor, and American painting fields learning \u201cthe trade.\u201d<\/p>\n
My days included hours of research in art reference libraries, cataloging acquisitions, previewing auctions, and checking on art at the conservators and framers. In those days, the art business had a Wild West quality. It attracted colorful characters. The adage that sometimes learning what not to do can be more instructive than what to do certainly applied. Numerous dealers I knew went bankrupt or to jail. The most important lesson learned was to avoid debt.<\/p>\n
Generally, working at a gallery isn\u2019t well paid. But, if you can sell, you make commissions. A wise Italian old master dealer counseled me to start buying, too. He said, \u201cWhen your own money is on the line, it makes you focus.\u201d He was right. By 1994, I was ready to go off on my own, buying and selling American paintings from my apartment and later from a gallery space on the fourth floor of a townhouse on New York\u2019s Upper East Side. Around 2010, collector and museum interest in American paintings waned. Ready for a new challenge, I pivoted to modern and contemporary art, opening a gallery in Litchfield, Connecticut, in 2014. Learning a new field was challenging yet rewarding. When our family relocated to Rhode Island in 2016, I acquired the smallest building in the smallest state for my business. I continue to buy and sell modern and contemporary art and added estate jewelry from the 1960s to 1980s.<\/p>\n
My career as a gallerist has been an adventure. I\u2019ve been surrounded by great art, experienced the thrill of making discoveries, selling to fascinating collectors, finding and promoting talented artists, and seeing works that passed through my hands on museum walls. And I really do learn something new every day. It hasn\u2019t been easy, but it has been wonderful.<\/p>\n
The only typical thing in the running of an art gallery is the sitting and waiting for people to stop in. A lot goes on behind the scenes. Keeping an eye on the markets is crucial. That means perusing endless sales online and in person. There are visits to conservators, framers, artists, and collectors. Going to museum exhibitions is important, too. Cataloging acquisitions, organizing exhibitions, hanging shows, and promoting them is essential. The biggest challenge is managing the income and the outlays. Since I buy and sell, it is always a balancing act.<\/p>\n
My studies at Trinity taught me to think critically, to research, and to write well.<\/p>\n
As a history major, I enjoyed almost all of my classes, particularly \u201cEuropean History\u201d with Borden Painter and two courses with McKim Steele, \u201cImperialism\u201d and an independent study. I had an art history class with Alden Gordon. Sadly, it was at 8:30 a.m. in a dark room after early-morning crew practice. Not a good combination. Professor Gordon has been a great supporter of my career. I regret that I didn\u2019t major in art history. The department has a fabulous reputation and an active alumni network.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
DEGREE: B.A. in history JOB TITLE: Gallery owner, Andrea S. Keogh Art & Design LLC FAVORITE TRINITY MEMORY: The wonderful people I met. Many are still my closest friends. From my first days on campus, I was struck by how genuinely nice everyone was. My freshman and sophomore years, I coxed the women\u2019s varsity crew. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"parent":723,"menu_order":1,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-737","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n