LAWTON – One day, photographer Chris Martin and community activist Barbara Curry were working on a photo project when Martin had an idea.
The photographer, who was a friend of Curry’s, told her to take the pain she had experienced in her life, ball it up in her fist and let it go. Curry followed Martin’s instructions, and he captured her expression in a photo.
“This is the breath as she lets it go,” Martin said, pointing to the photo on a video screen. “The moment I saw the image on the screen – we had it connected to a computer – I’m not going to say my heart stopped, but my world stopped for a second. Because I realized what she had just given me.”
Tulsa artist Denise Ford later used that photo to create a bronze sculpture of Curry’s head and shoulders, known as a bust.
People who knew Curry got a chance to see the photo, and the sculpture it inspired, when the Women That Votes Art Corporation hosted an unveiling event July 18 at the Lawton Farmers Market.
Curry was the founder and leader of Women That Vote, a nonprofit which encouraged women to vote and run for public office. The Women That Vote Arts Corporation, an offshoot of the original organization, was formed to educate people about the suffrage movement and raise money for a sculpture project called “Celebrating Suffrage.”
Curry, who died in August 2022, was running for the Ward 4 seat on the Lawton City Council at the time of her death. Celebrating Barbara Curry The event turned into a celebration of Curry’s life, as her family and friends shared memories of her and her contributions to Lawton. They talked about Curry’s boisterous laugh, her determination to help other people and her “words of wisdom” when she thought someone needed her advice.
Curry’s close friend Cynthia Sosa said she was shocked when she learned that Curry was dying, because the two had planned to visit voters during Curry’s council campaign. Sosa said she still hears her friend’s voice two years later.
“I hear her telling me stuff,” Sosa said. “Sometimes I don’t want to hear it. But Barbara Curry was good at giving wise advice, even when you didn’t want to hear it.”
Martin said Curry had some painful experiences in her past, but she had decided that those difficulties would not hold her back.
“She used all of that to create positive change for so many people in so many communities within this larger community of Lawton,” Martin said.
Curry’s son, Anthony Curry, said his family moved from Germany to Lawton in December 1995, and Curry was not a fan of Lawton at first. But she found her purpose in 2002, when she became a bus driver for the Lawton Area Transit System.
As a driver, Curry enjoyed talking to people and figuring out ways to help them, Anthony said.
“Barbara Curry – her purpose was to help people, whether it was a mission or not,” he said. “She was always finding a way to help somebody.” Unveiling the sculpture As the sculpture was unveiled, people burst into applause and took photos of the a rtwork. When the ceremony ended, people moved toward the sculpture for a closer look.
Sosa, who saw the sculpture for the f irst time at the e vent, said she didn’t want to look at the bust at f irst because she thought the sight might make her cry. But Sosa decided to take a side vie w of the sculpture, and she was pleased with what she saw.
“I was like, ‘Oh, my gosh. They really did capture her – her es sence,” she said. “So, I’m really proud.”
Anthony Curry saw the sculpture for the first time a couple of hours before it was unveiled to the public. For him, the sculpture was a powerful reminder of his mo ther’s passion for helping others.
“Her spirit still lives on in the city of Lawton, in the com munity,” he said. “Any way you can help your neighbor or your community, don’t hesitate to step up and help others out.”
The bust will be displayed in the Lawton- Fort Sill Chamber of Commerce lobby until an art garden is installed in N ed Shepler Park, located next to the Farmers Market. When the art garden is ready, the sculpture will be placed along the o ther artworks.