What happens when the traditional boundary of a painting ceases to be a static flat surface and becomes a vibrant, open window into spatial wonder? For Brooklyn-based artist Jason Stopa, known for his lush impasto, graphic precision, and architectural compositions, the act of painting is an ongoing investigation into how light, grid, and physical paint interact on canvas.
Opening on October 29 at Morgan Present, Jason Stopa: Open Window brings together an exhilarating new suite of paintings that explore the timeless art-historical trope of the window—reimagined through a bold, contemporary lens of color theory and theatrical framing.
When Architectural Frame Meets Luminous Abstraction
Since the Renaissance, the painting-as-a-window metaphor has shaped how we view representative art. Jason Stopa subverts and celebrates this lineage by constructing painted frames within frames, layering thick impasto gestures over crisp, geometric grounds.
In Open Window, Stopa creates an intriguing tension between figure and ground, interior space and exterior landscape. His work treats color not merely as a decorative tool, but as a physical, light-emitting force that pushes outward from the canvas into the gallery space.
The exhibition underscores several key artistic investigations:
- The Frame Within a Frame: Layered compositional borders that question where the painting ends and the viewing environment begins.
- Tactile Impasto vs. Flat Field: Thick, sculpted paint strokes applied with visceral immediacy alongside smooth, flat planes of saturated color.
- Architectural & Natural Allusions: Grid motifs, archways, and window sills that evoke both urban grid structures and natural horizons.
The result is a presentation that radiates exuberance and painterly joy, inviting viewers to pause and look through as much as at each canvas.
Featured Works & Visual Highlights
1. Luminous Grids & Archways
New canvases featuring Stopa’s signature neon-adjacent palettes—vibrant pinks, golden yellows, cobalt blues, and electric greens—organized through architectural arches and window frames that glow with internal light.
2. Sculpted Paint Gestures
Thick, tactile ribbons of oil paint that sit atop the canvas surface like physical relief, adding a three-dimensional, sculptural dimension to flat architectural shapes.
3. Spatial Interplay
Works that playfully reference historical masters of color and form—from Henri Matisse’s open windows in Collioure to Josef Albers’ color interactions—translated into a fresh, modern vernacular.
Why This Exhibition Matters
Jason Stopa: Open Window offers a celebration of medium-specificity in contemporary abstraction. At a time when digital screens dominate daily visual intake, Stopa’s tactile, glowing surfaces reassert the unmatchable physical power of hand-applied paint and color.
For art lovers, collectors, and gallery visitors, this exhibition marks an exciting autumnal highlight, showcasing an artist operating at the height of his painterly confidence and formal ingenuity.
Exhibition & Visitor Details
- Exhibition Title: Jason Stopa: Open Window
- Artist: Jason Stopa
- Venue: Morgan Present
- Opening Reception: Thursday, October 29, 2026
- Admission: Free and open to the public
