Leo Antony Gleaton facts for kids

Leo Antony (Tony) Gleaton (born August 4, 1948 – died August 14, 2015) was a famous American photographer. He was born in Detroit, Michigan. When he was 11, his family moved to California. After high school, he joined the Marines. Later, he went to college at the University of California, Los Angeles. There, he became very interested in photography.

A big part of his work was taking pictures of people of African descent. He showed how their culture spread across the Americas. He was also well known for his photos of black cowboys. Tony Gleaton passed away at his home in Palo Alto, California, on August 14, 2015, after an illness.

Early Life and School

Tony Gleaton was born into a middle-class family. His mother, Geraldine Woodson, was a school teacher. His father, Leo, was a police officer. His parents separated when Tony was 11 years old. After that, his mother moved the family to Los Angeles, California.

Tony started college at East Los Angeles Junior College. He played football there. In 1967, he left college to join the Marine Corps. He served one tour in Vietnam. In 1970, he came back to the U.S. He then enrolled at the UCLA. He attended using the GI bill, which helps veterans pay for school. He also took classes at the University of California, Berkeley and the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena. He earned a special degree in Fine Arts Photography in 2002.

His Photography Career

In 1977, Tony Gleaton moved from California to New York City. He started his photography career there. At first, he was interested in fashion photography. But in 1980, he left New York and the fashion world behind. For the next few years, he traveled around Texas and Mexico. He worked many different manual jobs. These included construction and working in oil fields. During this time, he also started to photograph African Americans in those areas.

From then on, Gleaton made a career out of photographing certain groups. He took pictures of black cowboys, Native Americans, African Americans, and Mexican Americans. His main focus was the many different cultures in the South-West of the U.S. and Mexico.

Gleaton was especially interested in people who had moved or were "displaced." He focused mainly on people of African descent in the South-West. He took special black and white photos called "environmental portraits." Some of these were close-up pictures of people. Some were group photos. He also took pictures of the landscapes where these people lived. The photos he took of people showed their everyday lives. They were not staged or set up.

Tony Gleaton's main topic was race and culture. He found that the biggest mix of cultures was in South and Central America. So, he spent most of his time and energy traveling there. Sometimes, he faced challenges because of how he looked. He had light skin and green eyes. He looked different from the people he photographed. This sometimes made them feel uncomfortable at first.

Gleaton usually traveled alone to the places he photographed. He traveled lightly, mostly by bus. He typically carried only his camera gear with him. After many years, Gleaton learned how to earn the trust of the people he photographed. When he first started, some people felt uneasy. This was partly because of his appearance. He was 6 feet 4 inches tall and weighed over 300 pounds. But he learned how to make them comfortable enough to take their pictures.

He is most famous for his traveling photo exhibition. It was with the Smithsonian. It was called Africa’s Legacy in Mexico. This exhibit started in the 1990s. It included famous photos like "Man & Canoe" and "My Father, My Son." The exhibition also featured a diary entry by Gleaton. It was called "Oaxaca Diary." In it, he wrote about a trip he took to Mexico in 1988 to take photos.

Later Years

Tony Gleaton passed away on August 14, 2015. He was 67 years old. He died at his home in Palo Alto. He is survived by his fourth wife, Lisa (whose maiden name was Ellerbee). She is a teacher, and they married in 2005.

See also

In Spanish: Leo Antony Gleaton para niños