Assheton Gorton Dies At 84 After 'Blow Up' Art Director Suffered A Heart Condition In Recent Years!
Leading English production designer, Assheton Gorton died peacefully in his sleep Sept. 14, his daughter Sophie told the Shropshire Star, 84-year-old Gorton died in the Churchstoke valley situated in Powys, Wales after wrestling a heart condition in recent years.
His work in 1981 film 'French Lieutenant's Woman'earned him Oscar and BAFTA nominations. The movie was adapted by Harold Pinter and directed by Karel Reisz. Based on the novel by John Fowles, Carl Davis provided the music score for the movie while cinematography by Freddie Francis.
Having been a part of big movies like Swinging London" of the 1960s, the Richard Lester comedy The Knack ... and How to Get It (1965) and the Michelangelo Antonioni mystery thriller Blow-Up in 1966, Gorton's film career as an art director started off excellently with him securing his first ever BAFTA nomination in 1966 for Blow-up.
While serving as production designer on 101 Dalmatians, 1996 and its 2000 sequel, he faced challenges like working alongside puppies and fake snow which required to be disinfected in order to protect the animals on sets.
Filmography:
Lester's The Bed Sitting Room (1969), starring Peter Cook; The Magic Christian (1969), with Peter Sellers and Ringo Starr; Ridley Scott's Legend (1985), starring Tom Cruise; Revolution (1985), with Al Pacino; For the Boys (1991), starring Bette Midler; Rob Roy (1995), with Liam Neeson and Jessica Lange; and Shadow of the Vampire (2000), starring John Malkovich.
Prior to making his movie entrance, Gorton studied architecture and art at the University of Cambridge and Slade School of Fine Art. Later he designed productions for the ITV anthology series, Armchair Theatre.
orn in 1930 in Sedbergh, England, the avant-garde English production designer Assheton Gorton worked on numerous films in a career spanning over 50 years. Survivors include his daughter Sophie, his wife Gayatri, sons Barnaby and Steve and seven grandchildren.