Hannu Väisänen (born 2 October 1951 in Oulu) is a Finnish painter, graphic artist and writer who has lived in France since 1989, dividing his time between Paris and Souillac in the southwest. He won the Finlandia Prize for literature in 2007 for his novel Toiset kengät and is the first Finnish artist to have received state prizes for both visual art and literature. His seven-part autobiographical Antero series, begun with Vanikan palat (2004), traces a boy's journey from an Oulu garrison to life as an artist in Europe, and his illustrated edition of the Kalevala (1999) remains one of his most celebrated visual works.
Väisänen published Viisikko (Siltala, 3 September 2024), the seventh and final volume of his autobiographical Antero series, dealing with siblings, ageing and memory.
A Uusikaupunki congregation's earlier plan to sell Väisänen's altar paintings was quietly dropped, according to the parish vicar.
Väisänen opened a Kalevala-themed summer exhibition at Laukko Manor in Vesilahti on 5 June 2023.
