The resulting works have two main sources: 

– Documents and photographic archives from the 50s to today: 

Work location and preservation of images from: 

+ Family albums & Archives 
+ Archive from photo clubs, associations and cultural centers
+ Archives from agencies, museums, foundations and other institutions

– Works by selection of photographers

The project has been developed between May 2012 and September 2013.

After the II World War, the need for work led to several European governments to implement measures that gradually opened their systems to accommodate workers from European countries such as Portugal and Spain or Italy. These workers went mainly to Germany and France. These movements of people were produced also in some countries of Eastern Europe. Since 1950 the flow of migrants, who had led since the beginning of the century to America, changes the destine and is heading to Europe.

This emigration was overall promoted by the recipient countries: in addition to recruitment agencies or parastate, they  established bilateral and multilateral agreements between governments. UK, Belgium, France, Switzerland, Holland, Luxembourg, Sweden and West Germany used this system underwent a wider expansion: it was, at first, temporary recruitment of foreign workers in peripheral countries. In the first stage preference was given to workers from”white”  countries but later turned to Turkish and North African immigrants.

Between 1956 and 1973 two millions Italians and Spanish, a million Turks, a million Yugoslavs, half million Greek and Irish and more than 400,000 Finns went to other European countries. Towards the end of the period the flow decreases, due to some convergence of living standards between European countries. However, we found that in early 1994, six of the ten largest groups of foreign residents in the whole of the EU come from other EU countries: Italy, Portugal, Ireland, Spain, UK and Greece.

The temporary stage became in many cases definitive, and many European citizens had to establish in countries where they hardly know their culture and language. Under these circunstance, they starting to build a new life.