Jeff Sonnabend – Seeking the soul of the American Heartland

When Jeff Sonnabend, an Intellectual Property attorney from New York City, moved to Arkansas near the geographical center of the lower 48, he decided to follow his passion as a documentary photographer.

Inspired by the work of German filmmaker / photographer Wim Wenders, he began photographing American communities for his project “Interstate Magazine”, a project roughly modeled on the work of the Farm Security Administration (the FSA) of the 1930s and 1940s.

Like the work of the FSA, all of his documentary photography is meant to “show America to Americans”. As such, Jeff’s photography captures a detailed, truthful view of America as it really is.

Early in 2023 Jeff published his second book, “The Route 66 Primer, An Uncropped View of the Mother Road.” He recently published an article in the January 2023 issue of Street Photography Magazine that tells the story of his book with a sample of his favorite images. His previous book, “Bowling the American Dream, America’s Bowlers and Their Bowling Alleys”, was published in 2019.

In today’s episode, Jeff shares his personal story about how and why he travels the American heartland in search of its soul.

A selection of Jeff’s project photos

Links from the show

• Interstate Magazine
• The Route 66 Primer
• Bowling the American Dream by Jeff Sonnabend
• Written in the West by Wim Wenders
• Paris Texas – Film by Wim Wenders