Toddmary (an amalgam of Todd and his middle name Mary) graduated from the University of Washington, Seattle, with degrees in Gender Studies and Theater in 1989. After leading roles in over 50 shows in San Francisco and New York City, Mr. Bërn embarked on a career in web arts and computer gaming.

In November 2004, he had a sudden major hemorrhagic stroke that left him unable to speak or walk. After much work learning to say forgotten words and sentences while also regaining his ability to walk, Toddmary persevered and began to express himself with painting, using his non-dominant hand. As an artist in residence at ART ACCESS in Salt Lake City, Toddmary built a body of work with the help of a local renowned artist. New neural pathways have helped him expose a creative expression that reflects accessibility, adaptation, and peaceful harmony.

My work explores the divergence from typical neural pathways created after my hemorrhagic stroke. Not only did I have to learn to paint with my left hand, ideas and actions have found new meaning and representation in how I experience and live in the world. My movements must be fully engaged to avoid falling while at the same time my memories have become ephemeral and fleeting.

The combination of these adaptive elements have created a new language, one that reflects both challenge and discovery. Through my art, I share a perspective shaped by resilience, transformation, and the ongoing redefinition of self.