[2][3] The group sought to save a historic structure slated for demolition and to revitalize it as a community art gallery.

[5] Information about each exhibition was published for visitors in English, Spanish, Tagalog and Vietnamese, reflecting the diversity of patrons in San Jose in the 1990s.

[5] Built from local Greystone Quarry sandstone in 1892, the structure was designed to serve as the main post office for the city of San Jose.

A 45,000-square-foot modern addition known as the "New Wing", designed by architects Skidmore, Owings and Merrill to house the majority of the exhibition space, was opened to the public in 1991.

[19] In 2018, the SJMA acquired new works for the permanent collection: from sculptors Louise Nevelson and Alexander Calder, from the American artists Andrea Bowers, Russell Crotty, Morris Graves, Lara Schnitger, and Terry Winters, as well as from the Palestinian artist Mona Hatoum.

[20] The San Jose Museum of Art held major exhibitions for artists Leo Villareal in 2010, and Richard Misrach, Guillermo Galindo, and Tabaimo in 2016, under the tenure of Susan Krane.

[22] The Art Newspaper reported that the San Jose Museum of Art framed 2019 as "the year of visionary women artists” that featured shows by Jay DeFeo and Catherine Wagner, along with major exhibitions by artists Rina Banerjee and Pae White.

[25] The work features a platform-shod traveler on a road trip to Castroville, California, who visits a quirky landmark and sends a postcard to SJMA.

Created for the exhibition of the same name and inspired by the common experience of a summer road trip, this project aimed to promote the exhibition, sow the seeds for a participatory experience both outside and inside the museum, and build connections between the museum's online audience and on-site visitors.

[citation needed] The same year, it received a Cornerstone of the Arts Award from the City of San Jose for the mural Sophie Holding the World Together by El Mac in collaboration with The Propeller Group.