The museum is housed in an old residence built between the late 17th and early 18th centuries by the Lazo de la Vega and Pínelo families, whose coat of arms crowns the façade. Popularly, the building is known as “the house of Hernán Cortés,” despite the fact that the conquistador never lived in the city of Oaxaca.

Over the years, the manor of the Lazo de la Vega and Pínelo families passed through several owners until the State Government acquired it in 1986 to establish the Museum of the City. Six years later, on February 28th, 1992, the joint initiative of artists, citizens, and authorities gave the property a new purpose with the creation of the Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Oaxaca.

In 2010, the residence housing the museum underwent an 18-month restoration. The ceiling above the museum’s staircase features a star-shaped vault with ribbed plasterwork, on which Francisco Toledo worked and which has now become an additional visual highlight within the museum.

The museum also includes a sculpture courtyard, where lectures are held and, occasionally, film screenings and performances.