The Bakken Museum

The Bakken Museum The Bakken Museum inspires a passion for innovation by exploring the potential for science, technology, and the humanities to make the world a better place.

A historic mansion, unique collections, medicinal gardens, dynamic exhibits, and rich education experiences; The Bakken Museum truly has something everyone can enjoy.

Join us for a special screening of Sound & Color , followed by an exclusive conversation with featured artist . This int...
09/01/2026

Join us for a special screening of Sound & Color , followed by an exclusive conversation with featured artist . This intimate event offers a closer look at the creative process behind the work, with insights from the artist herself.

Sound & Color is an experimental documentary exploring synesthesia, creativity, and the fundamental urge to be understood. The film centers on a creative experiment with Kraning, a visual artist who experiences sound-to-color synesthesia.

Set in the Great Hall, the screening begins at 4 p.m. (doors open at 3:30 p.m), bringing the film’s visuals and themes to life in a space designed for shared experience. After the film, stay for a live discussion with Kraning, where she’ll reflect on the ideas, inspiration, and techniques that shaped Sound & Color.

Join The Bakken Museum's head curator for an exclusive behind-the-scenes tour of our state-of-the-art collections vault....
08/29/2026

Join The Bakken Museum's head curator for an exclusive behind-the-scenes tour of our state-of-the-art collections vault. Explore a rarely seen area of the museum and discover remarkable artifacts spanning the history of science, medicine, bioengineering, medical technology, and innovation. From historic medical instruments to one-of-a-kind scientific curiosities, you'll get an up-close look at pieces of our collection that are not on public display.

Vault Tours are restricted to ages 18+. Each ticket includes admission to the vault tour as well as general admission to the museum for that date.

Link: https://thebakken.org/calendar/vault-tour-september-2026

As our summer camps officially come to an end this year, we'd like to thank all of our wonderful camp staff! Without you...
08/28/2026

As our summer camps officially come to an end this year, we'd like to thank all of our wonderful camp staff! Without you all it wouldn't be possible for us to host 34 weeks of camps across the metro area. We saw a total of 585 campers this year across our various locations! From our Camp Innovation hosted at the museum, to the new St. Paul camp hosted at the University of St. Thomas. Not to mention our Young Makers camps, corporate camps, and community camps. Our campers learned so many amazing things this summer and got to make such cool builds! (Be on the lookout for more pictures of those in the future) So thank you all and we hope to see you all again next summer!

STEM Day at the Minnesota state fair is almost here! Come visit The Bakken Museum and Medtronic at Dan Patch Park (near ...
08/25/2026

STEM Day at the Minnesota state fair is almost here! Come visit The Bakken Museum and Medtronic at Dan Patch Park (near The Grandstand) THIS THURSDAY (Aug. 27th) for hands-on STEM experiences the whole family can enjoy.

This year's theme, "Hands-On STEM: Build It. Test It. Change the World," comes to life with special participants, presentations and shows throughout the day. You'll see firsthand how curiosity and creativity can inspire the next generation of changemakers.

Check out the produce from our garden! Lots of delicious tomatoes this year as well as some cucumber and peppers! Also c...
08/23/2026

Check out the produce from our garden! Lots of delicious tomatoes this year as well as some cucumber and peppers! Also check out the monarch butterfly that was visiting when we took these pictures!

08/21/2026

Make it a day with The Bakken Museum! Here is a fun day for you and your friends to partake in, including local spots such as and ! We hope to see you at our facility soon! Stay curious!

Next week the Minnesota State Fair opens and The Bakken Museum will be there! Join us August 27th for STEM Day at the fa...
08/19/2026

Next week the Minnesota State Fair opens and The Bakken Museum will be there! Join us August 27th for STEM Day at the fair!

Visit The Bakken Museum and Medtronic at Dan Patch Park (near the Grand Stand) during the Minnesota State Fair for hands-on STEM experiences the whole family can enjoy. This year's theme, "Hands-On STEM: Build It. Test It. Change the World," comes to life with special participants, presentations and shows throughout the day. You'll see firsthand how curiosity and creativity can inspire the next generation of changemakers.

We look forward to seeing you there!

For the 10th year in a row, The Bakken Museum has been holding free Science in the Summer programs! Funded by GSK, in pa...
08/17/2026

For the 10th year in a row, The Bakken Museum has been holding free Science in the Summer programs! Funded by GSK, in partnership with The Franklin Institute, these summer workshops seek to empower everyone to do science and to get kids to see themselves as scientists. This summer, the theme is Be a Chemist. One of these Chemist activities is the Water Chemist!

Kids are now Water chemists and are tasked to test water pollution from a local river and find ways to make it safe! This is one of four Chemist activities The Bakken Museum has been holding this summer!

Join one of our curators on a tour of Earl Bakken's collection kept in our state-of-the-art vault! Coming up September 1...
08/15/2026

Join one of our curators on a tour of Earl Bakken's collection kept in our state-of-the-art vault! Coming up September 12th!

Vault Tours are restricted to ages 18+. Each ticket includes admission to the vault tour as well as general admission to the museum for that date.
Spots are limited so act now!
Link in bio!

Join us for one extraordinary night in support of The Bakken Museum. Brilliant, our signature annual fundraiser, returns...
08/14/2026

Join us for one extraordinary night in support of The Bakken Museum.

Brilliant, our signature annual fundraiser, returns Thursday, Oct. 1 at Historic Grain Belt Brewery.

Celebrate the power of curiosity with live and silent auctions, interactive STEM experiences, inspiring speakers, and plenty of Bakken fun — all while helping inspire the next generation of changemakers.

Your ticket includes:
Heavy hors d’oeuvres
Two complimentary drinks + a welcome beverage
Interactive STEM experiences
Live and silent auctions
Complimentary valet

Details:
Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026
6:30–9:30 p.m.
At Historic Grain Belt Brewery

Get your tickets for Brilliant 2026! → thebakken.org/brilliant

Must be 21+ to attend.

Address

Minneapolis, MN

Opening Hours

Tuesday 12pm - 4pm
Wednesday 12pm - 4pm
Thursday 12pm - 4pm
Friday 10am - 4pm
Saturday 10am - 4pm
Sunday 10am - 4pm

Telephone

+16129263878

Website

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