Mabel Cawthra

Mabel Cawthra Adamson
Born	Mabel Cawthra 1871 Lucerne, Switzerland
Died	1943 Port Credit, Ontario, Canada
Nationality	Canadian
Occupation	Painter and decorator
Known for	Arts & crafts decoration

Mabel Cawthra Adamson (1871–1943) was a Canadian painter and decorator, active in the Arts and Crafts movement in Toronto.

Mabel Cawthra was born in Lucerne, Switzerland, in 1871. The Cawthra family were wealthy Canadian merchants, described by her son Anthony Adamson as the "Astors of Upper Canada". They owned a huge amount of property in the western part of Toronto. She attended the Victorian Era Ball on 28 December 1897 hosted by the Governor General and the Countess of Aberdeen at the new Militia Armory in Toronto. The ball celebrated Queen Victoria's diamond jubiliee, and proceeds went to the Victorian Order of Nurses. Mabel dressed as Madame Recamier, as depicted in a portrait by Jacques-Louis David. She married Agar Adamson, also from a patrician Upper Canada family, on 15 November 1899.

Soon after their marriage Agar Adamson was sent to Halifax, Nova Scotia, to serve with the Royal Canadian Regiment of Infantry. Adamson was anxious to serve in the Second Boer War (1899–1902). In March 1900 he used his connections to obtain a position with Lord Strathcona’s Horse. He reached South Africa early in June 1900. After seeing action, Adamson fell ill and was sent as an invalid first to England, then in March 1901 to Canada. He made another attempt to see action, returning to South Africa in 1902, but the war had ended when he arrived.

Mabel became involved with the Arts and Crafts movement in England. In 1902–03 she studied at Charles Robert Ashbee's Guild of Handicrafts in Chipping Campden in the Cotswalds. The school was known for enamel and metal working. It was also known for woodcarving and cabinetmaking, but Mabel probably focused on silversmithing, jewelry and enameling.

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