Lesley Anne Ivory

Lesley Anne Ivory ( Lesley Anne Revill; born 1934) is a British painter who generally paints cats, and is best known for her "Ivory Cats". She has illustrated more than 40 children's books.

She was born Lesley Anne Revill in 1934 in Luton, Bedfordshire, UK. Her father was a dental surgeon and her mother a textile designer. She attended St.Alban's School of Art, specialising in fabric design and wood engraving.

Ivory rose to fame in the 1980s, following time spent developing her illustrative abilities with many freelance commissions. It is her 'Ivory Cats' with highly detailed studies of cats on rich and decorative backgrounds that have made her work popular on merchandise for nearly three decades, from plates, greeting cards, kitchenware through to wristwatches, fine china and wall calendars. She has taken part in exhibitions, including three one-woman shows in London, and at Salisbury Museum in Wiltshire. In 1993, Ivory had a major exhibition in New York. Her wood engravings were exhibited at the Summer Exhibition of the Royal Academy for a consecutive decade. She also created a set of limited edition prints of animals for the World Wildlife Fund.

The range of merchandise featuring the Ivory Cats is extensive and includes hundreds of items from the US, UK and Europe in addition to being an expanding market in Japan. It has appeared on merchandise from Danbury Mint, Hunky Dory, Enesco, Past Times, and many others. Today Ivory's work can be seen on Flame Tree calendars, Halcyon Days boxes, and Wentworth Wooden Jigsaws. Her work is exhibited at the Chris Beetles Gallery.

In 2015, Ivory commissioned her first website. Ivory and her husband, artist Evan Ivory, live in Hertfordshire, England. The Ivorys have two sons and two grand-daughters.

Books written Ivory has written many books. 1988: Cats Know Best. (written by Colin Eisler) 1988: Kittens – Pop-up book 1989: Meet my Cats 1989: PostCats 1990: Tiny Kittens – Pop-up book 1991: Little Angels – Pop-up book 1991: Cats in the Sun 1992: Book of Cats 1992: Collectable Cats 1992: Perfect Little Cats 1992: Glorious Cats 1993: The Birthday Cat 1995: Cat and Carols 1995: Cats Amongst the Toys 1991: Christmas Cats 1998: Star Cats: A Feline Zodiac 2001: Cats 2007: Home is Where the Cat Is