Barbara Curry started her professional career as a commercial artist after attending Ferris State University. But in 1985, when her older son, Ryan, was born, she underwent a period of soul-searching that not only changed her art but also her life.

"Soon after Ryan was born, I decided that I'd be a good mother and change some of my more irresponsible ways," said Mrs. Curry, of Peters.

	Post-Gazette Barbara Curry in her home studio. Click photo for larger image.

That led to an outlook on life that translated to a more spiritual approach to her painting and the selection of subjects for her artwork.

"To get on the right path, I started searching for spiritual meaning in my life by attending different churches," she said. "However, they all seemed to focus mostly on Sunday services, and I wanted a religion that would give me daily guidance rather than just a weekly Sunday morning event."

Living in Dallas at the time with her husband, Joe, a pilot for US Airways, she decided as part of her quest to study fine art and philosophy at the University of North Texas. There, one of her professors who taught a course on introduction to world religions made a huge impact on her life with his knowledge of the subject and the way he treated all religions with respect.

"Eventually, when I discovered that he was a member of the Baha'i faith, I started to attend the Baha'i Center in Dallas," she said. "Four years after Ryan was born, I became a member of that faith."

Influenced by the sheer volume of Baha'i literature that addresses the value of art and how it can touch people's lives, Mrs. Curry has since developed a spiritual connection with her art. One particularly influential book, "The Purpose of Spiritual Reality" by John S. Hatcher gave rise to her belief that the world is a classroom designed by God to instigate and nurture mental and spiritual growth.

"My goal as an artist is to observe nature and meditate on the lessons it has to offer, then connect what I learn and see to the spiritual world in the hope it will touch people's lives through my work," said Mrs. Curry, who moved to Peters with her family in 1995.

As an example, she refers to a recent painting titled "Sundust Road," a landscape she photographed one morning after jumping into a Jeep with her husband and setting off for the back roads around the Eighty Four area of Washington County.

"I must have taken at least 50 photos on our outing that morning, but this one really struck me," she said.

Mrs. Curry sees the road that grabbed her attention as a metaphor for humanity's search for the meaning of life. Standing at a crossroads the road ran through, she was reminded of her son, 21 at the time, who had gone to college for a couple of years before deciding it wasn't for him.

"Wanting to do something with his life, he decided to enlist in the Navy," she said. "I took the photo just after he talked to the recruiter but before he went off to boot camp, when he was at a crossroads in his own life."

Another metaphor that struck her as particularly poignant was the way the shadows of the trees in the fields darkened portions of the road, giving rise to the thought that, without shadow, the light wouldn't seem as bright.

"If you compare the light, which gives form and color to objects, to God, he can be seen as that which gives humans spiritual life, hope, understanding and compassion," she said.

Some of Mrs. Curry's recent paintings, along with the works of eight other artists will be included in a pastel exhibit that opens Saturday at Gallery 200 on North Main Street in Washington. The exhibit opens with a reception from 6 to 9 p.m. and will continue through June 30.

At least three of her exhibited works focus on what she sees as the purpose of life -- the development of virtue.

"Painting, I believe, helps acquire virtue, such as humility," she said. "For example, I'm usually happy with my paintings after I finish them, but then have second thoughts later on when I see their flaws or someone points them out to me. However, I feel humbled by the thought that my mistakes are a means by which I can continue to grow as a person and an artist."

A member of the Pittsburgh Pastel Artists League and the South Hills Art League, Mrs. Curry has attended workshops with nationally and internationally renowned artists such as Zoltan Szabo and Hong Tat Foo. Besides being featured at Gallery 200 in Washington, her work can be seen at Planet Art Gallery in Mt. Lebanon, Farmhouse Coffee and the Fast Frame Gallery in Peters, and at the World West Gallery in Washington.