Joan Ayling

Ayling was known as a miniaturist.^[7] She exhibited a miniature at the Salon des Artistes Francais in 1939.^[8] In 1952 she won a silver medal at the Paris Salon and in 1957 was awarded a gold medal for her work from the same body.^[5][9] British art historian Raymond Lister considered her among "the best of all" miniaturists,^[10] and he included an example of her work in his 1953 book on the silhouette.^[11]

Ayling painted portraits of several notable individuals including Bertrand Russell, Edgar Evans,^[12] and a number of church leaders.^[5] As well as the Paris Salon, Ayling was a regular exhibitor at the Royal Academy, the Royal Society of British Artists and at the Walker Art Gallery in Liverpool.^[6] Her work was included in the exhibition Sladey Ladies, held at the Michael Parkin Gallery in 1986.^[13][6] She was a member of the Royal Society of Miniature Painters, Sculptors and Gravers and served a term as the society's vice president.^[14] She lived for many years in the Wembley area of London.^[9]

Ayling married Welsh physician Evan Robert Rees in 1936. Her husband died in 1981, and she died in 1993, at the age of 88.^[1]