Security Envelope Collage – Lisa Fredenthal-Lee

Monet had his lily pads.
Warhol had his soup cans.
Seurat had his dots.
Lisa Fredenthal-Lee has her security envelope snipped up bits.
And the art world will never be the same.

Robin Bullard

Cut, Snipped, Torn, and Pasted

Scissors were my first tool. Paper and paste, my first materials. In development for 6 years, my current work is a return to a beginning. With a life long love and respect for cast-off materials, I am inspired by this common throwaway: the Security Envelope. At a glance, my pictures may read as something they are not. Assembled from the printed interiors of security envelopes cut, snipped, torn, and pasted. These works defy their origins. Collage as a medium is limitless. Envelopes rescued from trash cans the world over, offer up an array of patterns and colors from which to build. My subject matter is a result of discovery and memory. Since the invention of this new medium, I have enlightened many to look at their mail differently. (2016 – Present)

Special Series: Happy Faces

Security envelopes are a special type of envelope designed and manufactured with a built-in security system. The cross hatched patterns mask the text and numbers inside the envelope, thereby securing the enclosed information. For this reason, security envelopes are generally used to protect sensitive information being sent through the mail.