Having drawn since toddler-hood, Cathy signed up for "Painting from a Spiritual Center," the one upper-level college art class offered that didn't require prerequisites. For the first few months she labored simply to paint trees until her art professor stood behind her watching and whispered, "Just let go, Cathy."

Since then, Cathy has dedicated her time mostly to writing, editing, designing and illustrating for newspapers and magazines. (Currently, she's the editor of the Style & Soul section of the Philadelphia Inquirer.) But her spare time goes toward her most creative endeavor — painting whatever she wants.

She paints with both watercolor and acrylics, and she likes to use bright colors, probably to compensate for growing up in a beige-decorated home.

Cathy lives in Elkins Park, Pa., attended Tel Aviv University, graduated from the University of Vermont and earned her master's degree in journalism from Northwestern University in Chicago.