Barry was born in Manchester in 1941, Although painting and drawing always played a crucial role in his life, his formal training was in design - he achieved a first class B.A.(hons) degree in Ceramics and Tableware Design. It was not until he moved to Cornwall in 1979 that he first thought of painting as a possible profession. Here he entered a period of his life that had a profound influence on the remainder of his artistic career, meeting and working alongside a group of extremely active artists which led to considerable development of his artistic abilities.