Masha Granich (they/them) is a queer and trans Ukrainian immigrant and multidisciplinary artist, living and working in Tiohtià:ke/Mooniyang, otherwise known as Montreal. They work primarily in blue ballpoint pen, illustration, stained glass, metalwork, and found object installation. Their practice is an experiment in visual autofiction and world-building; drawing influence from immigrant and refugee experiences, oral tradition and a growing personal symbology grounded in ancestral and cultural legacies. Their practice is heavily influenced by a mix of Ukrainian and Slavic practices, which is often a chaotic coexistence of folklore, pagan and Orthodox ritual, and resistance.
They studied Publications and Printmaking at OCAD University in Toronto as a way to explore alternate personal narratives through storytelling and experimental bookmaking. They were the owner of Rest Stop Studio until 2025, a multidisciplinary community space and studio located in the Plateau, Montreal. Their work has been exhibited at La Maison de la Culture du Plateau (2025), La Centrale Galerie Powerhouse (2025), ARTCH (2024), Fais-moi l’art (2024). They will be exhibiting a body of work at La Maison de la Culture Marie-Uguay in March of 2026.
Masha Granich’s work evolves through intuitive & lifelong visual exercises in world-building. They draw from personal reference images & memories to create scenes that exist in an imaginary world where all their works can exist simultaneously. This process seeks to create a space where tradition & folklore, auto-fiction, ancestral wisdom, & ordinary magic can be interwoven. To do so, they use a visual language made up of domestic & familiar symbols to create scenes where heritage, myth-making, & prayer can be reflected onto.
Working mainly with ballpoint pen, stained glass, installation, & found objects, their work aims to evoke cultural nostalgia, curiosity & healing for those who share parts of their queer or cultural identity, especially in wartime contexts. Their drawings are scraped into textured canvas using blue ballpoint pens & cradled in sculptural frames or repurposed found objects. They often use their family & community as icons, collaborations, & figure references in their process, & use their memories to build their visual narratives.
Masha’s current research is interested in the origins of tradition, Orthodoxy, superstition, & folklore. They use these knowledge forms to imagine & build alternate cultural mythologies that allow for play, humour & the reconciliation of traditionally conflicting parts of their identity. This research has led them to consider their practice of collecting as a cultural experience informed by ancestral tradition & identity, Granich is drawn to working with found objects & antiques as framing devices. These objects are filled with ghosts & memories, contributing their stories to a process of co-creation.