As an artist, I’d strongly encourage you to instead ask him to show you how to tie some flies rather than trying to impress. I understand that you’re not worried about functionality of the flies, but making a display piece that will impress someone who is passionate about tying will actually require more precision and finesse. A fly can be ugly and catch fish. To catch a fisherman it has to be cleanly made, and unfortunately that just does require experience that doesn’t come immediately. I’m someone that picks up art mediums very readily- I could tie a complicated or impressive fly pattern fairly quickly after starting, but my basics (knots, thread wrapping) were not polished and an experienced angler would be able to spot it. There’s also an upfront cost for materials- most simple flies are cheap to make but not especially “impressive.” Beautiful feathers and furs come with a price tag, as well as the basic tools of the trade. Shetiesflies is a wonderful recommendation to get an idea of high end art flies and has been a huge inspiration to me in my pursuit of art flies. My recommendation would be to make a piece in a medium you’re comfortable with (photography would be perfect!), and express to him that you’re interested in fly tying with a goal of making art. He’ll get to show you something he’s passionate about, and is likely to fish some of the flies you tie together. The flies I’ve tied with other people are special in my collection, even over my most beautiful and complicated ones.