Arts diary: Felicity's odyssey nets wreck from the Exe that's worth more than a legacy

Rich, fortunate enough to count the actor Jude Law among his patrons, is one of the most subtle and distinctive artists working in the UK today. The first time he popped up on the Diary's radar was during the 2002 Pittenweem Arts Festival where, as part of an exhibition of work made by and inspired by the late Ian Hamilton Finlay (who was very much alive and kicking at the time) he had created a witty, slightly surreal tribute: a jacket and trousers made out of bright blue sailcloth entitled A Suit of Sails for Ian Hamilton Finlay.

However, it turns out this piece was something of a departure for Rich. It wasn't until 2008, when he had a major solo show at Bourne Fine Art in Edinburgh, that the Diary became acquainted with his signature way of working.

A serious sailor with a lifetime of experience, Rich often picks up pieces of driftwood on his travels. Typically they are well-worn chunks of marine ply with several layers of paint flaking off them, and it is on these that Rich carves tiny likenesses of his boat, a Cornish crabber called Jouissance. It's a simple, almost perfunctory act, but it has a transformative effect: suddenly areas of rough wood come to resemble choppy seas and knots start to look like whirlpools. Whole seascapes appear where before there were just a few nondescript patches of paint.

Felicity Harwood visited Rich's Bourne Fine Art exhibition but she didn't happen to have a few thousand pounds kicking around that would enable her to snap up one of his creations. Recently, however, she inherited two silver spoons, sold them for 2,000 and headed south. All she had to go on was a line from the exhibition catalogue, which read: "Graham Rich lives and works on the River Exe. His studio overlooks a bend in the river." Against the odds, she got her man.

Relieved to discover that the Exe was in Devon, and not even further away in Cornwall as she'd originally supposed, Harwood spent a whole day walking up and down the Exeter Ship Canal and staring across to the river, searching for a likely-looking bend. Eventually she found Rich in his studio and bought a beautiful piece called Night Visitor, with two versions of Jouissance etched into a hunk of scarred, battered wood that looks as if it's just been torn from a recently wrecked ship. Better than a pair of silver spoons? By a nautical mile.

Found Underground

FROM found objects to… FOUND the band, who have just scored themselves a record deal with Chemikal Underground and will be releasing their third long-player next spring.Comprising former art college buddies Ziggy Campbell (lead vocals, guitar), Tommy Perman (bass guitar, synth) and Kev Sim (electronics, percussion), the group have been a fixture on the Edinburgh scene for some time now. The lo-fi, cut-and-paste aesthetic of their first two albums caused critics to swoon with delight and they captured the imagination of the world's press last summer with their Cybraphon project, which saw them build an "emotional" robotic one-man-band in a glass-fronted wardrobe in Edinburgh's Inspace Gallery - a diva-like creation that played either happy or sad music depending on what people were saying about it on the internet.

Previously, FOUND were signed to achingly cool Fife-based micro label Fence Records, but the move to Chemikal represents a step up into the big leagues.

Perman says: "Chemikal has a fantastic heritage with so many amazing bands in their back catalogue. We're really happy to have found such an appropriate home, and it's great to become part of a Scottish musical institution that started the careers of greats such as Arab Strap and Mogwai. Plus they're letting us do deluxe vinyl packaging for the new album and they bought us beers."

Johnny Lynch of Fence added: "Another graduate from the Fence Academy. Nice one boys! Very proud indeed."

Celebrated snapper

CONGRATULATIONS to Albert Watson, who will receive the The Royal Photographic Society's prestigious Centenary Medal tonight at an awards ceremony in London.

Born in Edinburgh in 1942 to a teacher and a boxer, Watson has always been blind in one eye, yet he went on to become one of the most celebrated photographers in the world.

After studying at Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art in Dundee and the Royal College in London, he moved to Los Angeles in 1970. He was working as a teacher and taking photographs as a hobby when he was introduced to an art director at Max Factor, who offered him his first test session, and from there his career went stratospheric. He has since provided images for over 200 Vogue covers and over 40 covers of Rolling Stone magazine and he has photographed a huge range of celebrities, from Alfred Hitchcock and Mick Jagger to Bill Clinton and the Queen.

The Diary's favourite Watson snap, however, is still the 1999 portrait of rapper Snoop Dogg, whose serious expression and carefully arranged ringlets make him look like a confused poodle.