About Ursula Murray Husted

Ursula Murray Husted is the creator of the graphic novels A Cat Story and Botticelli’s Apprentice. A lifelong artist, former professor, and advocate for the arts and art history education, Husted teaches formal comics classes, lectures, and art history workshops ranging from graduate university seminars to pre-K .

Husted received her PhD from the University of Minnesota, MFA from the Minneapolis College of Art and Design, and BFA from Marshall University.

About Ursula’s Cats

Before I introduce my cats, I’d just like to point out that I am a human being. By all accounts, this is a grand thing to be.

Human beings have thumbs and know how to operate can-openers and tabulate spreadsheets. The cats I live with can’t do either of those things, so far as I know. Although my cats don’t usually care much about spreadsheets, they do grudgingly acknowledge the whole can-opener situation. With this in mind, they graciously allow the human beings to think we have made the house rules.

One of those house rules is to not be outnumbered. Our home is shared by three humans and three cats. As is my habit, I have named the cats for typefaces. What they call themselves is a mystery.

Myriad

Also known as: Baby, Big Kitty, the Dowager.
Vital Statistics: Mackerel Tabby, tiny.
Her Nature and Habits: Myriad is a tiny striped muffin bristling with teeth and hate… and brief bouts of intense affection seeking. She can be most often found perched on radiators, the ends of beds, and anyplace where she can be warm while glowering down at the kittens. She is color coded to let you know where to pet her. Don't pet the tan bits. Or the black bits. The brown bits are available for petting every third Tuesday.
The Typeface: The typeface Myriad is almost identical to Adrian Frutiger's self named Frutiger typeface, but with a characteristic descender. When we picked out Myriad, the cat, at the Animal Humane Society, she was sharing a cubby with her already adopted sister. They were almost identical, but Myriad had three stripes on her tail.

Zapfino

Also known as: Zap, Zappers, ‘Stache, the Anarchist.
Vital Statistics: Calico, sister to Didot, medium sized.
Her Nature and Habits: Inelegant and lackadaisical, Zap is also strangely brilliant. She’s jailbroken three different models of safety collar latches. I’ve resorted to a zip-tie to keep the ends of her collar together or else she’ll be naked in ten seconds flat. Zap can be most often found zooming away at top speed, screeching to a halt, and staring at random corners of the house for reasons beyond human comprehension. I think she might be able to see fairies.
The Typeface: The typeface Zapfino is a curly ridiculous bundle of a display typeface with long curving flourishes, scrolls, and very decorative dingbats. Zapfino, the cat, is also a very decorative dingbat.

Didot

Pronounced: (Dee-doh)
Also known as: Deets, Jello-Cat, Didi, the Droid, Lovebug, Carpet Shark, Meatloaf, the Gourmand.
Vital Statistics: Tortoiseshell, sister to Zapfino, rather large.
Her Nature and Habits: Didot’s physical demeanor can be best described as pudding in search of a bowl. She is a tummy-rub seeking lap cat who makes the most adorable little sounds- rather like the droids in StarWars. She can most often be found sleeping curled up under whatever is fabric is the handiest- blankets, winter coats, beach towels, and the laundry. She would be the perfect cat, but for one habit: Didot eats everything. Bread, raw carrots, lettuce, all fruit, dairy of all kinds, dropped cereal bits, and scrounged yogurt scrapings. She’ll dunk her head in a cup of black coffee if you leave one unattended and has a particular yen toward unpeeled bananas. She drags these beneath the couch and devours them whole. The vet is on speed dial and the kitchen is kept very, very clean.
The Typeface: Didot is a round friendly group of typefaces that get along well with other typefaces in pretty much any situation.