Lady Francisca Adriana (Paquita) Mawson OBE (1891–1974), community worker and writer, was seventeen when she met Douglas Mawson, shortly after his return from Ernest Shackleton's British Antarctic Expedition. Engaged before Mawson left for the perilous 1911 Australasian Antarctic Expedition, they eventually married in March 1914. Their first of their two daughters was born in 1915; she remained in Australia when Paquita went to England to assist Mawson in his wartime role with the Ministry of Munitions. Their second child was born in London in 1917. After the war, the family settled in Adelaide, where Paquita worked for the Mothers' and Babies' Health Association, including nine years as president, and the Australian Red Cross Society. Notable for her community work, Paquita was equally prominent in Adelaide's social and cultural life. She also wrote two books: biographies of her father, A Vision of Steel (1958), and her husband, Mawson of the Antarctic (1964).
It is thought that this portrait of Paquita Mawson came about when she was invited to pose for one of Ingrid Erns' art classes in Adelaide. In the portrait the sitter is striking and elegant, depicted seated and in profile, wearing an elaborate embroidered shawl. The painting remained in the Mawson family until being donated to the National Portrait Gallery in 2010.
Gift of Gareth Mawson Thomas and Pamela Karran-Thomas of the Mawson family 2010. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.
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