Review: “A Graceful Rise”

By Diana Rudolph

[dropcap]O[/dropcap]n March 2, The American Museum of Fly Fishing will close its doors on the exhibition, “A Graceful Rise.” I was honored to attend the opening a year and a half ago in Manchester, Vermont and was thrilled to celebrate this milestone with many female angling luminaries, artists, fly tiers and rod builders. This showcase chronicles the history of women in fly fishing, those that have influenced and those that continue to carry the torch. Cathi Comar’s book, A Graceful Rise, compliments this exhibit brilliantly.

She breaks it up into three distinct chapters: Yesterday: The Pioneers, Today: Movement into the Mainstream and Tomorrow: Those that Continue to Lead the Way. From Dame Juliana Berners to Joan Wulff to Cathy Beck, the book contains fifty profiles of individuals, organizations and even fly shops that have made fly fishing history but more importantly have made the sport accessible for women. Kudos to Cathi Comar and The American Museum of Fly Fishing for not only supporting women who pursue their fly fishing passion, but also for compiling a wonderfully artistic and thorough exhibition and companion catalog.

 

 

 

By the editors

Diana Rudolph, a remarkable angler, is prominently mentioned in A Graceful Rise. She also holds several International Game Fish Association records and remains the only woman to have won the most prestigious of all the Florida Keys’ fly fishing tournaments – the Don Hawley Invitational Tarpon Tournament (2004).

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American Museum of Fly Fishing | 4104 Main Street, Manchester, VT 05254
802-362-3300 | Open Tuesday-Saturday, 10am to 4pm |

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