Art Manno

Art Manno was born in Bedford Stuyvesant in Brooklyn, New York, in a true workingclass neighborhood. From the earliest days, Art dreamed of a life in the arts. As a young man Art could often be found sketching from window displays at Manhattan’s Museum of Natural History.

Art studied Commercial Art at Art Career School and the School of Visual Arts in New York City, and then worked as an Art Director at some of New York’s top advertising agencies. Art moved to Virginia and worked for 15 years at the Christian Broadcasting Network, where he developed Bumbino.

One day, Art was assigned a project encouraging employees to select a coworker for an award; he and a colleague came up with a “workerbee” concept. “One day, I was looking at my wall where the Bumbino illustration was hanging, and I believe God put on my heart to create a children’s book. Growing up, I had always loved Walt Disney. I drew all of his characters whenever I could. I always dreamed of creating my very own character, and it finally happened.”

If you have a dream, young or old, rich or poor, pursue it, and never give up on what you set out to do. Art is married to the love of his life, Louise, and they reside in Minneapolis, Minnesota with their dog, Cappuccino. Art and Louise have a son, Michael, his wife Chris, and two beloved grandchildren, Alyssa and Taylor. Their daughter, Allison, and her husband, Andy, also live in Minneapolis. Art’s hobbies include wildlife painting and collecting Roy Rogers memorabilia.