BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — David Manny has participated in the Allentown Art Festival 40 times since 1982, and this weekend, he'll do it for the last time.
Known for artwork depicting popular Buffalo landmarks, Manny has spent weeks selecting his best pieces to show and sell at this year's festival.
It's a popular event, with more than 300,000 people passing through according to festival organizers.
"I call it the first rite of a Buffalo summer," Manny said.
His work takes a mixed media approach, digitally drawing over his photographs to produce what he calls "digital watercolors."
That approach has earned him recognition in the festival's art contest. One piece took first place in the mixed media category.
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An artist from the age of 9, Manny first attended the festival in the early 1980s with his now-wife, where they spotted an artist selling portraits of famous people.
"We stopped, I looked at it and I turned to her and said, 'I can do that, no problem,' and she said, 'Do it,'" Manny said.
So he did, entering the contest and selling his own pencil drawings the following year. Manny became so involved that he even won the festival's poster design contest multiple times.
Now, as he approaches 75, he's decided it's time to step back.
"It takes a lot of work and a lot of planning and a lot of timing and a lot of help," Manny said. "I'm just going to concentrate on original work and galleries now - go to the next level."
Still, after the festival became such a fixture in his year, there are parts of it he knows he'll miss, especially the reactions to his work.
"I love to hear stories from people," Manny said.
