Joseph Sohm and Visions of America

featured in American Profile magazine

JULY 2011 - (AMERICAN PROFILE)

Visions of Democracy
By Marta W. Aldrich — Photos by Joe Sohm — July 2011

While a popular American axiom declares “a picture is worth a thousand words,” photographer Joseph Sohm discovered he had to take thousands of pictures to capture the idea behind a single word: democracy. A former American history teacher and musician who grew up in Webster Groves, Mo. (pop. 22,995), Sohm began his photographic odyssey during the early 1980s as America approached the 200th anniversary of the U.S. Constitution. Inspired by the Founding Fathers’ foresight to establish a republican form of government that derives its power democratically from the people, Sohm began snapping images that reflect that idea.

Read the American Profile magazine article (PDF):
Visions of Democracy

Reviews:  Joseph Sohm and Visions of America

Reviews in Ventana Monthly magazine

MAY 2010 - (VENTANA)

An Ordinary Day in America
By Ivor Davis—Photos by Joe Sohm — May 2010

…Sohm’s book continues its world travels with a stunning afterlife, including a symphony written for it, which many say has never been done before. His eye-popping collection of some 1,300 images has inspired the symphony composed by Ojai’s Grammy-winning musician Roger Kellaway, as well as the lyrics to a new song: “We The People,” penned by Oscar-winning duo Alan and Marilyn Bergman.

Read the Ventana Monthly magazine reviews (PDF):
An Ordinary Day in America  •  American Dream

News:  Joseph Sohm Appearance on

PBS Newshour Art Beat

Art Beat caught up with Sohm outside the Newseum.

PBS - THURSDAY DECEMBER 17 2009 - (PBS)

Everyone Smile and Say, 'Democracy!'
Posted by Mike Fritz and Quinn Bowman , December 17, 2009

The old adage that a picture is worth a thousand words may indeed be true, but photographer Joe Sohm has found that it has taken him thousands of pictures to capture just one word: democracy.

Sohm's over thirty year journey took him to all fifty states where he found and photographed everything from the president in the White House to the homeless of Beverly Hills.

(PBS WEB SITE) READ MORE …

News: Visions of America Team Member
Roger Kellaway Hired by Clint Eastwood
to Write Score for Mandela Movie

Roger Kellaway prepares for the performances of Visions of America at Kimmel Center/Verizon Hall in Philadelphia

OJAI VALLEY NEWS - WEDNESDAY JULY 29 2009 - (OVN)

...Recently, Kellaway received a call from Clint Eastwood. “He asked me if I
would come over to the studio and do some work for him at the piano,” said Kellaway. One or two phone calls later, Eastwood asked Kellaway to
help him with the score for his new movie. Eastwood, a jazz pianist, has a developed a score for the movie, but Kellaway was called in to refine the score and add some of his own colors...

...Ojai is home to many legendary musicians and Roger Kellaway is one of
them. He plays and composes for a multitude of genres and said, “Each type of music has its own excitement.” Few musicians are lucky enough to create a successful career, but Kellaway found a way...

(PDF) READ MORE …

In the News: Visions of America Book
Captures IPPY Award for Best in Class

OJAI VALLEY NEWS - FRIDAY JULY 17 2009 - (OVN)

Photographer-author Joseph Sohm, an internationally published photographer and resident of Ojai’s Saddle Mountain, won the Gold Medal in the 13th annual Independent Publishing Awards for his recently published book, “Visions of America — Photographing Democracy.” Sohm was awarded the gold medal in New York City in the category “Best Coffee
Table Book,” one of 65 categories within which the 4,090 books entered were judged..

(PDF) READ MORE …

Local newspaper features Joseph Sohm
and the Visions of America Concert

OJAI VALLEY NEWS - WEDNESDAY FEB. 18 2009 - (OVN)

Ojai is known near and far for inspiring great works of art. That claim to fame struck again in a major way two weeks ago — on the national stage — thanks to the collaborative genius of two seriously creative local citizens along with the help of a few of their well-known friends.

World-renowned photographer and Saddle Mountain resident Joe Sohm, along with his close friend and Ojai neighbor, the legendary jazz pianist and Grammy Award-winning and Oscar-nominated composer, Roger Kellaway, have just returned home from Philadelphia, where they debuted their masterpiece.

Titled Visions of America, their homegrown precious gem was a sold-out multimedia extravaganza of image and sound in celebration of democracy that quite aptly made its world premiere just days after President Obama’s inauguration and in a venue just a few blocks away from the Liberty Bell.

(PDF)  READ MORE …

Visions of America Distributed to Online Journalists

Copies of Visions of America have been sent out to a wide variety of online book reviewers and bloggers and many have already written about their thoughts and opinions of the book: