It is one of the major landmarks on campus, situated on a bluff overlooking the Mississippi River at the east end of the Washington Avenue Bridge. The building presents two faces, depending on which side it is viewed from. From the campus side, it presents a brick facade that blends with the existing brick and sandstone buildings. On the opposite side, the museum is a playground of curving and angular brushed steel sheets. This side is an abstraction of a waterfall and a fish.
The most stunning views of the building are from the pedestrian and highway decks of the adjacent Washington Avenue Bridge. Some locals critical of the radical architectural style frequently point out that the building's design could unexpectedly reflect the light of the sun into the eyes of motorists on the bridge. Studies commissioned by MNDOT have found that the museum is not hazardous to motorists.
Often called a "modern art museum," the 20,000+ image collection has large collections of Marsden Hartley, Alfred Maurer, Charles Biederman, Native American Mimbres culture pottery, and Korean furniture.
A new addition, also designed by Gehry, was expected to open in 2009. However, as designs and construction drawings have not been finalized as of April 2008, it is more likely that the addition will not open until late 2010.
The museum is named for Frederick R. Weisman, a Minneapolis native who became well known as an art collector in Los Angeles. He died in 1994. There is another Frederick R. Weisman Museum of Art on the campus of Pepperdine University in Malibu, California.
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