It all started in December 1954, when the then 22-year old soldier Bill Perlmutter boarded a troopship to Germany, to start his new assignment as a photographer for the U.S. Army. The first images from Perlmutter’s Rolleiflex were taken during the rough transatlantic voyage. Even though he had never left the United States and was a bit apprehensive about his future, Perlmutter was “looking forward to photographing Europe and visiting all those wonderful places that I had read about and seen in the movies.” His first leave after his deployment to Augsburg Germany, brought him to Paris, the city of light and home to many of his favorite photographers.

Permutter‘s view of post-war Italy was strongly influenced by the gritty realistic films such as The Bicycle Thief by Victorio de Sica. His preconceptions of Italy were further challenged when he found most Italians to be congenial, outgoing and optimistic about the future. Perlmutter’s photographs taken in Spain and Portugal display an honest interest in the conditions and the cultural distinctions that existed post war. His images are a testament to the different living standards in various parts of Europe.