May is Asian Pacific/American Heritage Month in the US, so it seemed appropriate to take a look at this episode of California’s Gold which originally aired on May 8, 2008. I’ve never visited the Pacific Asia Museum, but it definitely looks and sounds like a wonderful place to explore!

The Pacific Asia Museum is one of only four institutions in the United States dedicated exclusively to the arts and culture of Asia and the Pacific Islands. The museum’s mission is to further cultural awareness and under-standing through the arts.

This museum was originally the home and art galleries of an extraordinary woman named Grace Nicholson, who came to Pasadena from Philadelphia in 1901. In 1924, Nicholson commissioned local architects Marston, Van Pelt & Maybury to build a Chinese-style building for “Oriental and Western Art.” She lived in the building with her galleries down-stairs and her private apartment upstairs until her death in 1948.

Since 1971, Pacific Asia Museum has served a broad audience of students, families, adults, and scholars through its education and outreach programs. It has a collection of over 14,000 works of art including paintings, prints, sculptures, ceramics, jades and textiles from all over Asia and the Pacific Islands, and a research library containing more than 7,000 reference volumes relating to Asian and Pacific art and culture.

In this very special episode of California’s Gold, host Huell Howser tours the museum and discovers its many wonders.

(Click on the linked image below to see the video.)