The Porchfest home profile project was produced by University of Georgia students in Lori Johnston’s journalism seminar on home and garden writing and Katie Marages’ vernacular architecture course. The students interviewed homeowners, researched the residences and neighborhoods, and captured photo and video of the homes. The residences featured will host bands during Historic Athens Porchfest on Oct. 20.

Gwen Ingram O’Looney sits on her porch on a peaceful Sunday evening in the Cobbham Historic District. Twinkling string lights line the exterior, illuminating a soft glow over her assorted Rebecca Woods pottery, thrifted vases and outdoor ornaments. Her maximalist style begins on the porch and carries throughout the interior. 

Her home is a collection of memories. 

“If something is special or beautiful to me, I’ll collect it,” O’Looney said. “I like things that have proven their character, or that have accumulated some weight of their own.”

Her Craftsman home, situated on Cobb Street, was built in 1906 by the Crane family. During the Great Depression, the front porch was enclosed to create a duplex for the married daughters. When the O’Looneys purchased the house in 1982, 16 people were living on the 0.62-acre lot. 

The O’Looneys rented the house out until 2011 and then they began renovations to make the property their own. Her favorite addition is the expansive front porch, a charming space to gather with friends, read a good book and showcase more unique knick-knacks. With a long driveway, the porch combines an intimate sense of privacy, yet still feels the buzz of the community.

O’Looney, former mayor of Athens-Clarke County, is continuing her passion for community involvement as a host during Historic Athens Porchfest. Caroline Aiken, acoustic blues singer, will perform.

O’Looney’s personal touches are seen throughout the home with a copper ceiling in the downstairs bathroom and library room, illuminating the space from the top down. A mosaic of shells and glass artistically covers the exterior of the original, coal-burning fireplaces.

O’Looney’s personal history is displayed on the walls. Her husband’s hand-painted portraits cascade upwards and wrap around the dining and library rooms. The caricature style depicts their friends and family, aiming to capture how each person would age. While each subject may not be famous, they are an integral part of O’Looney’s world. The portraits are a constant reminder of her village of encouragement and strength.

“I was standing at the kitchen bar one day and looking out at that whole wall of … three walls of people that I knew,” O’Looney said. “I felt just pure support from all those people — each one of them I know.”

O’Looney lived in New York City when she was younger. Her decorating style from her small New York City apartment transferred to her Athens home, maximizing wall space and using fashion as a major influence. Dressed mannequins with vintage clothing are a staple in the decor. 

“I feel like when we dress, we costume, that we’re playing, that we’re expressing, that we’re exploring,” O’Looney said. “I’ve traveled a lot and so a lot of that has been influential.”

The downstairs guest bedroom highlights her eccentric collection, with pieces from flea markets, Athens artists and passed down jewelry hanging on a two-tier display. When it comes to finding items that speak to her to add, there is no specific method she follows. It’s whatever she happens to stumble upon.

“Life is a river,” O’Looney said. “These things flow by you, and you just reach in.”

O’Looney describes her personal style as inclusive, sentimental and vintage. Each specific piece contributes to telling the overarching story of her home and lived experiences.

The love of history and storytelling flows into the guest bedroom, with an abundance of family vintage portraits lining the walls, each with a unique, detailed frame. Her mother’s uncle was a photographer, who seized the opportunity to take photos of many family members on various occasions. Now, O’Looney cherishes the pieces of her family’s lineage that live through her photograph collection. 

“I think history is amazing,” O’Looney said. 

The stained glass window panels sandwich the gold bed frame symmetrically. She purchased the floral panels from an auction at a Victorian house in Watkinsville along with the matching bedside lamps. The beaded bedding comes from Amsterdam, adding color and texture to the room.

With an original Craftsman build lacking a central hallway, the bedroom has four doors for different points of entry, covering one door during the renovations. 

The corner of the guest bedroom draws attention instantaneously. Starkly contrasting framed photos and portraits, a sousaphone hangs where the two walls meet. Inside the brass instrument sits O’Looneys’ wedding bouquet and her husband’s boutonniere from the occasion. 

While O’Looney values her belongings and the memories they hold, she is confident she could downsize when the time is right. However, she hopes her collection ends up in the right hands.

“I would hope they would go to people that wanted them,” O’Looney said. “Probably donate the proceeds to a good cause.”

Kendall Kelly is a journalism major at the University of Georgia.

‘No Such Thing as Too Much’ 

Gwen O’Looney’s home serves as a personal museum of accomplishments, art and life experiences.

Shortly after marrying husband John and moving into the house in 1982, O’Looney ran for Athens City Council. After two terms on the council, she ran for mayor of the recently formed Unified Government of Athens-Clarke County and won in 1990. 

During that time, the couple only rented the house in the Cobbham neighborhood. They would do so for 25 years before finally purchasing it in 2011. 

Each one of her life experiences — volunteering with the Red Cross in Vietnam, working under former president and then-Gov. Jimmy Carter in Atlanta, holding the first mayoral title of Athens-Clarke County for eight years — is present, with photographs, pins, pieces of pottery and other memorabilia paying homage to her past. For example, her mayoral desk name tag hangs in the kitchen, and campaign buttons are scattered around various rooms. 

History follows the former mayor around her home. O’Looney explained that she had photographers in her family, which were rare during the end of the 19th century. Outside of the guest room, family and composite portraits track O’Looney’s family tree.

The downstairs bathroom is decorated with items from Gwen’s five-year stay in New York City. Figurines of the Statue of Liberty and Chrysler Building line the doorframe. They’re accompanied by collages of other pieces, including baby photos, local artists’ works and political keepsakes. 

O’Looney’s advice is to “have as much fun” as possible when decorating. 

“I’ve just learned that there’s no such thing as too much,” is what O’Looney wrote on the back of a postcard from her visit to the Palace of Versailles — a historical destination known for its over-the-top interiors. This is a mantra that O’Looney stays true to in her decor.

Mary Catherine Dodys is a journalism major at the University of Georgia.