Mike Venezia’s Getting to Know book series are in art rooms around the world. He was born in New York City and spent the first 10 years of his life moving between there and Chicago. When he was 10 years old, his family moved to the Chicago area permanently. His high school art teacher talked him into trying out for The School of The Art Institute of Chicago, where he received a bachelor of fine arts. He put his art history knowledge to use in creating the Getting to Know the World’s Greatest Artists books.

“I retired from my job of 33 years as Executive Art Director and Vice President at Chicago’s largest advertising agency, Leo Burnett Company, so that I can work full time on my books. I started my writing career back in 1978, when I authored and illustrated books for Childrens Press (Grolier/Scholastic). I’ve always had great support from my wife, Jeannine, son and daughter, Mike and Elizabeth, and even my dog, Bear. You can see them in cartoons on the back cover of many of my books.”