A painter, graphic artist, craftsperson, teacher, and writer, Edythe Ferris was born in Riverton, New Jersey. Ferris went on to study at the Philadelphia School of Design for Women (now Moore College of Art) in 1916 and specialized in illustration. Throughout her career, Ferris exhibited at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, the Salons of American Art, the Society of Independent Artists, and the National Academy of Design. Ferris was deeply committed to fostering the arts in the Philadelphia community and served as the director of crafts and adult education at the Central YMCA in Philadelphia from 1934 to 1938. She also served as an instructor of crafts at the Montgomery Country Day School in Wynnewood from 1942 to 1949.