Arthur Lawson (designer)

{{Short description|British art director (1908–1970)}} {{Use dmy dates|date=September 2019}} {{Infobox person |image = |imagesize = | name = Arthur Lawson | birth_date = 1908 | birth_place = [[Sunderland, Tyne and Wear|Sunderland]], [[County Durham]], England | death_date = {{death year and age|1970|1908}} | death_place = | othername = | occupation = [[Art director#In film|Art director]] | years_active = 1942–1969 }} '''Arthur Lawson''' (1908–1970) was a [[UK|British]] [[Art director#In film|art director]]. He had a long association with film directors [[Michael Powell]] and [[Emeric Pressburger]], beginning in 1943 when he was [[floor manager]] on ''[[The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp]]''. Three years later, when [[Powell and Pressburger]], also known as The Archers, made ''[[A Matter of Life and Death (1946 film)|A Matter of Life and Death]]'' (1946), Lawson had graduated to assistant art director.

He worked with [[Alfred Junge]] on the set decoration for ''[[Black Narcissus]]'' (1947), and won an [[Academy Award]] for [[Academy Award for Best Production Design|Best Art Direction/Set Decoration]] for ''[[The Red Shoes (1948 film)|The Red Shoes]]'' (1948).<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/1949 |title=The 21st Academy Awards (1949) Nominees and Winners |access-date=20 June 2024 |website=Oscars.org}}</ref> Lawson's association with Powell continued until ''[[Peeping Tom (1960 film)|Peeping Tom]]'' (1960). He received a [[British Academy of Film and Television Arts|BAFTA]] nomination for ''[[The Bedford Incident]]'' (1965).

==Filmography== {| class="wikitable" !Year !Film !Director !Notes |- |1942 |''[[The Foreman Went to France]]'' |[[Charles Frend]] | |- |1943 |''[[The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp]]'' |Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger | |- |rowspan=2"|1944 |''[[This Happy Breed]]'' |[[David Lean]] |- |''[[The Way Ahead]]'' |[[Carol Reed]] | |- |rowspan="2"|1946 | ''[[They Knew Mr. Knight (film)|They Knew Mr. Knight]]'' |[[Norman Walker (director)|Norman Walker]] | |- |''[[A Matter of Life and Death (1946 film)|A Matter of Life and Death]]'' |rowspan="6"|Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger | |- |1947 |''[[Black Narcissus]]'' | |- |1948 |''[[The Red Shoes (1948 film)|The Red Shoes]]'' |Won an [[Academy Award for Best Production Design|Academy Award for Best Art Direction/Set Decoration – Color]]<br>Shared with [[Hein Heckroth]] |- |rowspan="2"|1950 |''[[Gone to Earth (film)|Gone to Earth]]'' | |- |''[[The Elusive Pimpernel (1950 film)|The Elusive Pimpernel]]'' | |- |1951 |''[[The Tales of Hoffmann]]'' | |- |rowspan="2"|1952 |''[[Folly to Be Wise]]'' |[[Frank Launder]] | |- |''[[The Story of Robin Hood (film)|The Story of Robin Hood and His Merry Men]]'' |Ken Annakin | |- |rowspan="2"|1953 |''[[Twice Upon a Time (1953 film)|Twice Upon a Time]]'' |Emeric Pressburger | |- |''[[Front Page Story]]'' |[[Gordon Parry (film director)|Gordon Parry]] | |- |1954 |''[[The Constant Husband]]'' |[[Sidney Gilliat]] | |- |rowspan="2"|1955 |''[[Oh... Rosalinda!!]]'' |Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger | |- |''[[Richard III (1955 film)|Richard III]]'' |[[Laurence Olivier]] | |- |rowspan="3"|1956 |''[[The Battle of the River Plate (film)|The Battle of the River Plate]]'' |Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger | |- |''[[Sea Wife]]'' |Bob McNaught | |- |''[[High Terrace]]'' |[[Henry Cass]] | |- |rowspan="2"|1957 |''[[Hour of Decision (film)|Hour of Decision]]'' |[[C. M. Pennington-Richards]] | |- |''[[Seven Thunders (film)|Seven Thunders]]'' |rowspan="2"|[[Hugo Fregonese]] | |- |1958 |''[[Harry Black (film)|Harry Black]]'' | |- |1959 |''[[The Devil's Disciple (1959 film)|The Devils Disciple]]'' |[[Guy Hamilton]] | |- |rowspan="2"|1960 |''[[Sink the Bismarck]]'' |[[Lewis Gilbert]] | |- |''[[Peeping Tom (1960 film)|Peeping Tom]]'' |Michael Powell | |- |1961 |''[[The Valiant (1962 film)|The Valiant]]'' |[[Roy Ward Baker]] | |- |rowspan="3"|1962 |''[[The Very Edge]]'' |[[Cyril Frankel]] | |- |''[[The Brain (1962 film)|The Brian]]'' |[[Freddie Francis]] | |- |''[[H.M.S. Defiant]]'' |Lewis Gilbert | |- |1963 |''[[The Leather Boys]]'' |[[Sidney J. Furie]] | |- |1965 |''[[The Bedford Incident]]'' |[[James B. Harris]] |Nominated for the [[BAFTA Award for Best Production Design|BAFTA Award for Best British Art Direction – Black and White]] |- |rowspan="2"|1966 |''[[The Blue Max]]'' |[[John Guillermin]] | |- |''[[Bindle (One of Them Days)]]'' |Peter Saunders | |- |1967 |''[[The Double Man (1967 film)|The Double Man]]'' |[[Frank Schaeffer]] | |- |1968 |''[[The Lost Continent (1968 film)|The Lost Continent]]'' |[[Michael Carreras]] | |- |1969 |''[[Midas Run]]'' |[[Alf Kjellin]] | |}

==References== {{reflist}}

==External links== *{{IMDb name|0493156|Arthur Lawson}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lawson, Arthur}} [[Category:1908 births]] [[Category:1970 deaths]] [[Category:Best Production Design Academy Award winners]] [[Category:British art directors]] [[Category:Place of birth missing]]