The collage collective was founded by artists Ann Jacobs, Anna Maria Sablan and Brigitte Sukeforth during the summer of 2004. Ann Jacobs, a retired educational paraprofessional works as a painter on canvas, paper and fiber; Anna Maria Sablan, a graphic designer and owner of Anagrafx Advertising-Design is a photographer, collage and computer artist. Brigitte Sukeforth is a successful designer of quilt patterns and collage artist.

In the fall of 2004 the ArtDivas came to life as these three brought five additional artists to the newly-formed collective. They were: Cheri Henry-Carey, an illustrator and painter; Annie Johnson a painter who works in mixed media; Janet Manalo a web designer working in digital photography, textiles, acrylics; Jan Radesky, who owns her own greeting card company and creates in watercolor, assemblage and fabric; and Robin Rossi a printmaker and 3-dimensional artist.

With studios located in Solano County, California, a community east of San Francisco, members of the group have expanded their personal collage art work to include assemblage and installation projects.

Between 2004 and 2006, the ArtDivas created Unpuzzling the Tangram, an exhibit that traveled to four venues; painted a 20 foot mural that was sold to benefit a local arts advocacy group; received a grant from the City of Fairfield for their July 2006 exhibition, Maps and Messages: An Artful Journey; and created a second dynamic collage/mixed media 30' Mural for an event in September 2006. The ArtDivas' final exhibit for 2006 was Visual Harmony, dedicated to artwork inspired by music. It was on display during the month of December in the Performing Arts Center in Fairfield.

In March, 2007, the exhibit featuring artwork from Maps & Messages: An Artful Journey was shown at the Dorothy Herger Gallery at Solano Community College. The size of the group was reduced to seven as Cheri Henry-Carey pursued her individual artistic path. In May, 2007, the ArtDivas exhibited their collective works during ArtsBenicia Open Studios. The month of July was dedicated to a series of exploratory workshops held at several of the ArtDivas' private studios.

In January 2008, the ArtDivas exhibited Maps and Messages: An Artful Journey in the Tsao Gallery at the Davis Art Center, located in Davis, California.

In May 2008, the ArtDivas exhibited artwork related to the theme "Mother in Any Language." The dimensional work hung on Oliver's Wall in the Lobby of the Fairfield Center for Creative Arts.

September 2008 brought the 30 piece "eARTh" exhibit to the Fairfield City Gallery. The collage, assemblage and mixed-media art was inspired by Earth's beauty, the ecology and the problems that plague the planet. The artwork represents our artistic relationship to our planet. The installation consists of two and three dimensional art pieces; the unifying media is collage and assemblage.

October 2009: The Tsao Gallery at the Davis Art Center, located in Davis, California, was the next destination for the eARTh exhibit. Additonal artwork featuring Water as an inspiration was added to the evolving installation.

March 12, 2010 the ArtDivas attended the Women's Luncheon "Writing Women Back into History", sponsored by the Solano Library Association. Several works of art were exhibited, all of which were inspired by famous female artists. These will also become part of the upcoming exhibit, "Beyond the Frame."

Spring 2010 was spent finalizing artwork for the next exhibition: "Beyond the Frame". The mixed-media art represents work that either challenges traditional concepts or visually projects beyond the boundaries of a conventional frame. The collection features a broad palette of motifs as well as an array of abstract and traditional styles. The exhibit will also feature an interactive element, something that has become an ArtDiva tradition.

Summer 2010: "Beyond the Frame" was on exhibit at the Vacaville Art Gallery from June 29 through August 7. An evening outdoor Reception was held Saturday, July 17th from 7-9 pm. The Bob Jacobs' 4-some played incredible jazz, the weather was perfect, the guests were inquisitive and wonderful, the desserts were divine and the wine complimented the entire gala!

September 2010: Change is inevitable ~ the ArtDivas dropped to six members. Jan Radesky felt the need to return to her love of painting as well as try to better balance work and family needs. The rest of the ArtDivas were sad to see her leave the group, but we all fully understood her reasons for making the decision.

Summer 2011: We are working on creating new art for "Scapes", another large installation. We plan to complete everything for a 2012 exhibition. We also created another 30' Mural, which we cut up into sections for each ArtDiva to take to her studio for individual experimentation. Each artist has the freedom to incorporate the collaboratively created Mural background with other collage/assembage to create new artwork. The playful process has been fun; the results reflect each artist's style and spirit.

October 8 & 9, 2011: The ArtDivas participate at Phil Glashoff's pARTy. Lots of ART, food, wine, and folks, & fun.

2012: Summer: We exhibited "Expressions in Collage & Assemblage" at the Vacaville Art Gallery July 17 - August 25. A Summer Evening Reception was held on July 28th, 7-9 pm; the jazz band was fantastic, as were the arty vibes from guests and artists. Winter: we are preparing for another exhibit in 2013, creating artwork loosely related to 'wine'. We had a workshop in November to begin work on collaborative pieces. Ramona VanDeberg has been invited to join us on the adventure as a guest artist.

Summer 2013: We are still creating more art, enjoying field trips to the Napa region; and expanding our group to include Ramona VanDeberg as a permanent ArtDiva!

2014: We exhibited a mini-collection at the 7th Annual Women's History Month Luncheon, sponsored by the Solano County Library Foundation. The 2014 theme was: "Honoring Women of Character, Courage and Commitment" on Friday, March 28th 1130-1pm at the Joe Nelson Center, Suisun City.

2015: July 1 - August 1, we exhibited "Rated F: Fleshing Out the Female" at the Red Dot Gallery in Sacramento located at 2231 J Street, Suite 101. View RedDotGalleryonJ.com for more details. "Her Third Season", "Leap of Faith" and "She's An Open Book" were each created over a period of several months. The imagery evolved as we worked together, experimenting with textures, color, and layout. These collaboratives speak to the facets of career, personal ambitions, dilemmas, and maturation in the lives of ALL women.

Her Third Season	Leap of Faith	She's An Open Book

2015-2016: We are working on a variety of collections, to be completed and exhibited as opportunities present themselves. Several collections have been exhibited at the FSVAA Gallery in the Solano Town Center Mall Gallery as well as the Lawler House Gallery in Suisun, CA.

' Urban Angles ' ; artwork by the ArtDivas; 2016

2017: January We had a Printmaking Workshop at Ramona's Studio.

2017: January - November. "Art Inspired By Words". We embarked on an adventure in January. Each of the ArtDivas revealed a single new word each month. The selected words were: Journey, Imagine, Nest, Power, Symbolism, Ekphrastic, and Enduring. Work was created in response to each word, during a 4-5 week period. The size of the work was roughly kept to 12" x 12". The media and platforms used by each ArtDiva were entirely up to each woman.

At regular monthly meetings, each artist presented her 'themed' work. Techniques, inspirations, difficulties, and newly acquired skills were shared. At the conclusion of each meeting, to great fanfare and drum-roll, a new word was revealed by another ArtDiva and the creative process was repeated.

During the course of the adventure, four guest artists were also invited to participate. They were: Chris Meade, Janet Barnes, Jane Corich, and Christine Long.

At the conclusion of the project, the ArtDivas decided to publish a book, exhibiting the completed artwork. Each chapter is dedicated to the specific word and the art inspired by that word.

Left to right: Ann Jacobs, Robin Rossi, Janet Manalo, Annie Johnson, Anna Maria Sablan, Ramona VanDeberg.
Missing: Brigitte Sukeforth

January - February 2018: The ArtDivas welcomed Chris Meade to the group. Chris adds energy, creativity, talent, enthusiasm, and a passion for the arts ! New creative goals are planned for 2018. After 14 years of arty adventures, Janet Manalo is moving to Southern California. She will remain a Diva Sistah at heart, despite the distance.

Left to right front row: Annie Johnson, Robin Rossi, Chris Meade, Ann Jacobs, Ramona VanDeberg
Left to right back row: Brigitte Sukeforth and Anna Maria Sablan

We are women with diverse backgrounds, influenced by decades of active involvement in the visual arts. We are interested in exploring the creative process we call ART. As a collective, our work reflects the beauty and spontaneity of richly textured mixed-media assemblage and collage.

Our collaborative artwork, the result of the seven artists working together in several stages, exemplifies the strength of the ArtDivas' creative minds. We have extraordinarily amazing conversations when we get together, which is reflected in our artwork.

Ramon VanDeberg, Robin Rossi, Brigitte Sukeforth, Anna Maria Sablan
Ann Jacobs, Janet Manalo, Annie Johnson

December 2013