Günsu Hayriye Ozan is an interdisciplinary artist based in Ottawa, Canada, originally from Adana, Turkey. She is currently completing her MFA at the University of Ottawa and is represented by de Montigny Contemporary. Working across video, writing, and material-based practices, Ozan explores how identity is shaped through language, migration, and interpersonal perception. Drawing from her lived experience as a queer immigrant navigating English as a second language, her work examines misunderstanding, visibility, and the subtle pressures that mold the self over time. Using her own body, voice, and experience as primary material, she treats identity as impressionable and continually transforming through contact with others.
EDUCATION
2025 - present Master’s of Fine Arts Visual Arts, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON
2019 - 2022 Fine Arts, Ottawa School of Art, Diploma Program, Ottawa, ON, CA
2014 - 2017 Graphic Design, Yeditepe University, Fine Arts Faculty, Istanbul, TR
2015 - 2016 Graphic Design, Erasmus+, Collegium Da Vinci, Poznan, PL
2009 - 2014 Fashion and Textile Design, Yeditepe University, Fine Arts Faculty, Istanbul. TR
2005 - 2009 Painting, Adana Fine Arts Anatolian High School, Adana, TR
GROUP & SOLO EXHIBITIONS2019 - 2022 Fine Arts, Ottawa School of Art, Diploma Program, Ottawa, ON, CA
2014 - 2017 Graphic Design, Yeditepe University, Fine Arts Faculty, Istanbul, TR
2015 - 2016 Graphic Design, Erasmus+, Collegium Da Vinci, Poznan, PL
2009 - 2014 Fashion and Textile Design, Yeditepe University, Fine Arts Faculty, Istanbul. TR
2005 - 2009 Painting, Adana Fine Arts Anatolian High School, Adana, TR
2025 Art Toronto, de Montigny Contemporary, Toronto, ON, CA
2024 de Montigny Contemporary, Sauterie, Ottawa, ON, CA
2023 Pique Winter Edition, Menu of the Day, Curator/Performer, ON, CA
2023 Saw Gallery, Club SAW, Turkish Roots, Canadian Branches, Curator & Exhibitor, Ottawa, ON, CA
2023 Lee Matasi Gallery, Playthings, Solo Exhibition, Ottawa, ON, CA
2023 Wallack’s Art Supply & Framing x Wallack Galleries, Jinx!, Nosy Mag, Ottawa , ON
2023 Shenkman Arts Centre, Ottawa School of Art Fine Arts Diploma Alumni Exhibition, Ottawa, ON
2022 J.W.Stellick Gallery, Eleven, Group Exhibition, Ottawa, ON
2020 Lee Matasi Gallery, Tell Me About Yourself, Solo Exhibition, Ottawa, ON
2019 Gallery 200, Big 2, Group Exhibition, Ottawa, ON, CA
2019 Atomic Rooster, Girl with Rooster, Annual Art Exhibition, Ottawa, ON
2019 Mamut Art Project, Randomness, Young Artists Exhibition, Istanbul, TR
2014 ART350, Red Velvet Shepherd's Cloak, Group Exhibition, Istanbul, TR
HONORS & AWARDS
Jan 2026 Stonecroft Scholarship, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON
Sep 2025 Lily Koltun Prize, University of Ottawa, Visual Arts Deparment, Ottwa, ON
Nov 2021 Ted Marshall Memorial Scholarship, Ottawa School of Art, Ottawa, ON
Nov 2020 The Lillian Rapport Memorial Scholarship, Ottawa School of Art, ON
May 2020 Dr. Eva B Furesz Memorial Scholarship, Ottawa School of Art, Ottawa, ON
Nov 2019 The Lee Matasi Memorial Scholarship, Ottawa School of Art, Ottawa School of Art, Ottawa, ON
Nov 2019 The Ottawa Mixed Media Association Scholarship, Ottawa School of Art, Ottawa, ON
Jun 2017 Salutatorian, Graphic Design, Yeditepe University, Fine Arts Faculty
Dec 2014 Valedictorian, Fashion and Textile Design, Yeditepe University, Fine Arts Faculty
Sep 2014 MESİAD II. Fashion and Textile Design Contest, Merter confederation of businessmen and industrialists (MESİAD), 1st Prize
Jun 2009 Inter-high School Life Drawing Contest, Yeditepe University, 1st Prize, merit-based Scholarship
PUBLICATIONS
2025 T&A Talks Günsu Hayriye Ozan, Triada and Art, Online
2024 Life in Plastic: The Lush and Playful Upcycling of Günsu Hayriye Ozan, Nosy Mag, Online
Jan 2026 Stonecroft Scholarship, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON
Sep 2025 Lily Koltun Prize, University of Ottawa, Visual Arts Deparment, Ottwa, ON
Nov 2021 Ted Marshall Memorial Scholarship, Ottawa School of Art, Ottawa, ON
Nov 2020 The Lillian Rapport Memorial Scholarship, Ottawa School of Art, ON
May 2020 Dr. Eva B Furesz Memorial Scholarship, Ottawa School of Art, Ottawa, ON
Nov 2019 The Lee Matasi Memorial Scholarship, Ottawa School of Art, Ottawa School of Art, Ottawa, ON
Nov 2019 The Ottawa Mixed Media Association Scholarship, Ottawa School of Art, Ottawa, ON
Jun 2017 Salutatorian, Graphic Design, Yeditepe University, Fine Arts Faculty
Dec 2014 Valedictorian, Fashion and Textile Design, Yeditepe University, Fine Arts Faculty
Sep 2014 MESİAD II. Fashion and Textile Design Contest, Merter confederation of businessmen and industrialists (MESİAD), 1st Prize
Jun 2009 Inter-high School Life Drawing Contest, Yeditepe University, 1st Prize, merit-based Scholarship
PUBLICATIONS
2025 T&A Talks Günsu Hayriye Ozan, Triada and Art, Online
2024 Life in Plastic: The Lush and Playful Upcycling of Günsu Hayriye Ozan, Nosy Mag, Online