The Regional Directorate for Culture, through the Carlos Machado Museum, joins the celebration of the International Migrants Day with a conference on emigration and immigration in the archipelago of the Azores, an initiative organised in partnership with the Regional Directorate for Communities.

The event will take place at the old "Recolhimento" of Santa Bárbara (small convent) in Ponta Delgada on December 18, starting at 3 PM. It will be attended by the Regional Director for Communities, the Vice-President of the Azores Immigrant Association (AIPA), an Azorean emigrant living in Canada and a Brazilian immigrant residing in the Azores.

The meeting will be followed by a visit to the exhibition "Arte Portuguesa no Museu Carlos Machado. 1840-2010" (Portuguese Art at Carlos Machado Museum. 1840-2010). This display is focused on the symbolic significance and interpretation of works depicting the theme of migration, with special emphasis on the painting "Os Emigrantes" (The Emigrants) by Domingos Rebelo - the ex-libris of this exhibition.

The visit to the exhibition, which will be open to the public until April 18, 2014, will also provide an opportunity to disseminate recently acquired works, such as the sculpture "Virgem com o Menino" (Virgin and Child) by Canto da Maia and the "Auto-Retrato" (Self-Portrait) by Almada Negreiros.