Sanna Kannisto (b. 1974, Hämeenlinna, Finland) graduated from Aalto University, School of Art and Design, in 2002. Her work merges personal narrative with photography’s documentary tradition, exploring the intersection of science and art. Through her lens, she examines both natural phenomena and her own role as observer and interpreter. Kannisto has worked in field stations in the rainforests South America and lately ornithological stations across Finland and Europe. She builds portable studio setups in the field to isolate the subjects. Her carefully staged images, influenced by scientific illustration and still life tradition, depict rare species with theatrical precision—highlighting both the beauty of nature and the artifice of presentation. A key element of her practice is close collaboration with scientists and researchers.

Over the past 25 years, Sanna Kannisto has exhibited widely across Europe, the United States, and South America. Her exhibitions include Aperture Gallery (New York, USA); the 8th Mercosul Biennial (Brazil); Centro de la Imagen (Lima, Peru); Busan Museum of Art (South Korea); The Museum of Photography Seoul (South Korea); Kunsthaus Göttingen (Germany); Kunsthall Stavanger (Norway); and the Museum of Contemporary Art Kiasma (Finland). Her works are included in major public collections such as the Centre Pompidou (Paris, France), Fondazione Fotografia Modena (Italy), the Brooklyn Museum (New York, USA), and Fotomuseum Winterthur (Switzerland), as well as in numerous Finnish institutions. In 2015, she was awarded the Finnish State Prize for Photographic Art. Kannisto has published two monographs: Fieldwork (Aperture, 2011) and Observing Eye (Hatje Cantz, 2020). In 2015, she received the Finnish State Prize for Photographic Art.