Reopened in its new Civic Center home in March 2003, the Asian Art Museum is one of the Western world's largest museums devoted to Asian art. Its collection boasts more than 13,000 art objects, such as world-class sculptures, paintings, bronzes, ceramics, and jade items, spanning 6,000 years of history and regions of south Asia, west Asia, Southeast Asia, the Himalayas, China, Korea, and Japan. Previously in Golden Gate Park, the museum's new home in the city's beaux arts-style central library has been renovated under Italian architect Gae Aulenti and includes 29,000 square feet of permanent gallery space showcasing 2,500 objects at any given time. Add temporary exhibitions, live demonstrations, learning activities, and a new cafe and store, and you've got one very good reason to head to the Civic Center.