The Fly As An Art Form The purpose of this book is twofold: to trace the evolution of realistic fly tying and to feature the creations of the world's most-skilled practitioners of this art form. Some of these contemporary artisans concentrate on imitations of aquatic insects most likely seen by fly fishers. Their focus is on mayflies, caddisflies and stoneflies. For others, the sky is the limit and they tie replicas of anything, including praying mantis, crabs, bees, hornets, ants, spiders, and fish. Theirs is a small, but expanding, cadre of enthusiastic tyers whose work will astonish even those who have never tied a fly. The realism of their fly patterns, whether an art form destined for framed presentation, or a working fly intended for the end of a fly leader, will amaze.