Jason and Jay Knapton, Co-Founders and Directors at Rh45, talk about their journey so far and why they are shaking up the art space.

A trip to Greece. A glance at the periodic table. A passion for art. Three essential components that saw the birth of picture company Rh45.

Since the launch of Rh45 back in 2019, life started out like many new businesses, in a spare room of the family home, to then eventually upgrade to a larger space, in a garage.

Jason and Jay Knapton, Co-Founders and Directors at Rh45, reflected on their roots to where they are now, as well as sharing an insight in why the brand name is what it is. 

“We had such a passion for art and so many ideas of pictures that we wanted to bring to life. We had seen so many pictures and saw how we could make them better. So, we started, as a couple, making pictures in our spare bedroom in our house and they started selling! 

“Eventually, we had to rent a house with a triple garage, where we had more room to manufacture our art, laying them out on the drive on nice days to dry,” Jason said.

As time passed, and the business began to grow bigger, a family escape to the Greek Island Rhodes proved to be pivotal point in their journey.

Jay explained: “While on holiday with the children in Rhodes, we decided to form our business properly. We were trying to find a name that suited Rhodes, as it was the place that inspired us to go for it officially, and found that Rhodium is one of the strongest and most precious metals in the world. 

“It’s indestructible and all around us. Its element name on the periodic table is Rh45, and there our company and brand were born.”

The business quickly relocated production to a new warehouse and began to expand with extra staff on board to help with demand. Before this point, it’s worth noting that the couple made everything themselves, and to keep tight control of quality, it was only most trusted friends and family that joined initially. 

“When we started out, we made every single element ourselves, but we needed to grow and took on our most trusted friends and family that would share our passion, and have the same vision as ourselves,” Jason said. 

“Training them, to take on the same techniques as ourselves with the liquid art – so that every picture leaves our warehouse with the same quality as we first started out with, was a great journey and process. Every element, from the frame, print and embellishment of our pictures is made in-house, at our West Yorkshire facility.”

Rh45 has continued to evolve in the art space too. The company regularly commissions and works with artists, graphic designers and photographers to create bespoke images fresh from their minds as well as working with their existing profiles. 

Jay said: “We love to collaborate and see the results from our vision to the end picture. This means our pictures cannot be seen anywhere else and are unique to Rh45.”

Once the vision has been captured, the pictures are printed directly onto glass, so there is no fading or bowing, as Jay continued: “We use only the highest quality materials including resin, pigments, crushed mirror, glass and Swarovski crystals. This makes our pictures really stand out over and above any other picture manufacturer.

“We are not just another picture company. We are the Evolution of Art – continually striving for new and exciting images.”