Minneapolis Institute of Art
Artfully eerie apparitions reportedly roam in the rooms of this popular art museum
Ghost Stories at the
Minneapolis Institute of Art
- Cold spots are frequently encountered
- Spirits are said to turn the lights in the museum on and off
- Security alarms in the ‘period rooms’ go off for unknown reasons
- Shadow figures and apparitions are seen wandering the museum
- Phantom footsteps and other mysterious sounds are reported in the Tudor Room
- People claim to be touched by unseen forces in the Connecticut Room
History of
The Minneapolis Institute of Art
At the Minneapolis College of Art and Design, there are plenty of eye-catching buildings to go around. But one expansive structure at the edge of campus stands out from the crowd: the Minneapolis Institute of Art.
Built of heavy stone and ornamented with tall columns, the Minneapolis Institute of Art looks more like a Supreme Court building than an art museum. But when visitors explore within, they find one of the largest art collections in the entire United States.
Since opening in 1915, the Minneapolis Institute of Art has collected over 90,000 different pieces of art. And priceless artwork may not be all that the museum has collected.
Twin Cities legends say that the massive art museum may also keep a few ghosts on permanent exhibit.
Timeline of Minneapolis Institute of Art's History
Swipe or use timeline points to see Minneapolis Institute of Art through the years
1883
The Minneapolis Society of Fine Arts was founded in 1883, a small citizen group dedicated to bringing arts and culture to the region. In 1889, the group opened their first exhibition space in the public library. But, the society quickly outgrew the space. In 1911, local businessman DeWitt Clinton Morrison donated ten acres of land for a new art museum, so long as the society could raise $500,000 to build it. Through private donations and a gala event, the society raised the necessary funds almost instantly. Construction started soon after.
1915
The Minneapolis Institute of Art, also known as ‘Mia’, opened in 1915. Not long after opening, Mia was a huge success, with ten acres of space for expansion. The original society founder died in 1914, and left $1,000,000 to the museum, which helped it quickly develop a large and significant collection of art to show off. In its first year, the museum’s attendance topped 148,000.
1927
As donations and community support poured into the museum, Mia’s collection ballooned too quickly for the first building to sustain. By the mid-1920s, a new expansion was already underway. Opened in 1927, the expansion included an auditorium, more galleries, and office space. Successful years followed for Mia, as it brought numerous impactful and priceless pieces into its collection. These included Rembrandt’s Lucretia and a massive collection of Asian artwork bequeathed by flour magnate Alfred Pillsbury.
1974
In 1974, Mia underwent another expansion. Two new wings doubled both the exhibition space and education areas of the museum. But, this was just the beginning of a long-term wave of expansion. More galleries were added to the museum in 1998, and a 2006 expansion grew the exhibition space by 40%. By 2019, visitation was over 750,000. And, as Mia got more popular, so did the stories and legends about the museum. Today, along with artistic experiences, it seems many of Mia’s visitors leave with paranormal ones as well.
Is the Minneapolis Institute of Art Haunted?
One of the most often reported paranormal claims at Mia is cold spot encounters.
Mysterious cold spots are reportedly found throughout the building, but especially around the third floor’s ‘period rooms’ where spaces detail different eras of history.
In the Connecticut Room, some visitors say that the entire room acts as a cold spot, being strangely chillier than the rest of the museum, even in the midst of summer.
Other rooms reportedly have cold spots that will intelligently move around the space, like any other patron taking in the artwork.
Period Room Paranormal
The period rooms are the areas of the museum most well-known for phantom happenings.
Along with cold spots, ghosts in the Connecticut Room may also reach out and tug at peoples’ clothes while they’re viewing the art. In another period room, the Tudor Room, mysterious footsteps can be heard stomping around. Additionally, chairs around a table in the Tudor Room reportedly make strange creaking sounds, as if the ghosts in the room are sitting in them.
Ghosts in the Mia Machines
Beyond the period room activity, spirits around Mia reportedly manifest through the electrical systems.
Lights in hallways are reportedly turned off and on by ghostly forces. Some people even report that the odd light activity will follow them around the museum, like the ghosts are trying to light their way. Additionally, security alarms are reportedly tripped in different rooms, always for unknown reasons.
The Museum’s Watchful Apparitions
Security staff sometimes report seeing shadowy figures move through Mia’s long halls and wide open spaces. And some past workers have even reported encounters with especially vivid apparitions.
One oft-told story of an apparition encounter tells of a nightshift guard napping in the security room one night. The guard was purportedly startled awake by the figure of an old woman knocking at the room’s window. The old woman wagged a scolding finger at the guard for slacking off, and then disappeared before his eyes.
Minneapolis Institute of Art:
Artfully Eerie
The Minneapolis Institute of Art remains a highly popular cultural center in the city today, and not just because of the ghosts.
While many people visit Mia simply to take in the art, the building’s ghost stories make the period rooms especially popular. Paranormal enthusiasts from far and wide come to Mia hoping for an experience that’s both spooky and educational.
Though Mia doesn’t offer ghost tours, you can still learn about the spiritual stories around the museum through their ‘Haunted Mia’ audio tour. Additionally, perhaps as a partial reference to their paranormal reputation, Mia hosted the exhibition ‘Supernatural America: The Paranormal in American Art’ in 2022.
So, though Mia certainly has many different things to offer the citizens of Minneapolis, some people will probably always be there hoping to see both art and apparitions.
