The Building

The building that the Museum of Visual Materials calls home was not always the beautiful version visitors see today. The 1887 built warehouse was an eye sore in downtown Sioux Falls for many years, as it sat as a storage facility and dumping ground, surrounded by a chain link fence topped with barbwire.

In 2005, Dr. Rose Faithe purchased the former Standard Oil building, seeing the potential hidden behind the fence as a place to share her vision for the Museum of Visual Materials.

Over the next few years, Dr. Faithe, along with assistance from Stacey McMahan of Koch Hazard, completed a renovation on the facility to not only bring it back to life, but to become the state’s first LEED Platinum Certified green building.

The Museum officially opened its doors on June 1, 2007.