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Aileen Bassis


Artist and Poet



Homilies for the 99%


is about income inequality, a defining issue for our time. A homily is a moral lesson, often a platitude that responds to real problems with easy answers.


This series uses images and text from the late 19th century writer, Horatio Alger. His enormously popular novels posited that hard work and honesty will enable anyone to climb out of poverty and find financial security. His "pull yourself up by your bootstraps" thinking is still relevant today, used to blame people for their poverty rather than institutional forces.


All of this work combines images and text from Alger's work with urban street images. Rollins College posted a video of my Risograph printed book that is part of this project which

is linked here.





"Struggling" 2014, 16 x 16" print collage with mixed media



"Do and Dare" 2015, 16 x 16" print collage with mixed media



"Sink or Swim" 2015, print collage with mixed media



"Homilies for the 99%: The Resurgence and Resurrection of Horatio Alger" is a Risograph printed artists book, 2016, 20 pages, edition of 20, each page is 8 x 5."



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