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| Left:
A group of American POWs dividing their bread rations and
preparing for a meal at Stalag 3-B in North Africa. Below:
A prisoner barters with one of the guards |
Assigned to a combat photography unit because he loved cameras
and had taken pictures in high school, Spinelli was told to document
all aspects of GI life. Captured in North Africa, he was sent
to a POW camp in Germany, where he quickly learned the value of
bartering cigarettes, donated by the Red Cross, for vital commodities.
Desperate to tell the story of those held in camp, Spinelli traded
cigarettes with a German prison guard and received, in return,
a camera, tripod, and film. Spinelli hid the camera in baggy paratrooper
pants and, risking his life repeatedly, captured life lived within
the confines of POW camp Stalag III-B. Now 85 and a resident of
Florida, Angelo Spinelli credits his faith for his survival and
a desire to do his duty. He says simply, "I was told to take pictures,
and I did." The photographs in "Behind the Barbed Wire" are a
living testament, not only to the heroism and determination of
Italian Americans, but also to the human spirit.
The exhibit, curated by Concetta Macchia, is available for viewing
at our transitional residence:
John D. Calandra Italian
American Institute, Queens College, CUNY
28 W. 44th St., 17th Fl., New York, NY 10036
Hours:
Monday - Thursday 10am - 4pm and by appointment
For more information please call (212) 642-2020 or fax (212) 642-2069
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