The origins of MIEC date back to 1990,whensculptor Alberto Carneiro put forward the idea of organisingaseries of sculpture symposia related to contemporaryart,particularly public sculpture, in Santo Tirso. After the4thSymposium, a Municipal Council meeting held on 20 November1996passed the proposal for the creation of MIEC, aninstitutiondevoted to organising and carrying out the symposia,ensuring themaintenance and conservation of the pieces and theadvancement anddissemination of all the activities pertaining tothem.

The Museum was officially opened in 1997 by Jorge Sampaio,thenPresident of the Portuguese Republic, accompanied by MayorJoaquimCouto. Its operational structure was reformulated on 25March 1999,resulting in a new composition of its staff, which, inaddition totechnical and administrative employees, included twocurators —sculptor Alberto Carneiro and art critic GérardXuriguera.

The city of Santo Tirso has hosted the International SymposiumofContemporary Sculpture since 1990, which has brought artistsfromdifferent cultural, artistic and aesthetic backgrounds.

An institutional museum, MIEC has been conceived as a forum forthefruitful dialogue between different contemporary art trends,aswell as for debating and disseminating public sculpture. In aplacewith strong interaction between art and the population, thismuseumis therefore a privileged stage for reflection, and aunifyingcentre for innovative projects, in view of its uniquenature and ofthe especial relationship between the collection anditsenvironment.

The Museum comprises the urban perimeter of the town of SantoTirso,allowing for free, autonomous circulation, which strengthensevenmore the relationship between the artworks and theirlocations. Thisopen-air stage integrates the entire city in acomprehensiveartistic initiative, by containing the artworksresulting from theten sculpture symposia held between 1991 and2015. The MIECcollection includes 54 pieces organised according tosix mainclusters:

1) Parque D. Maria II and surrounding gardens;
2) Praça do Município;
3) Parque dos Carvalhais;
4) Praça Camilo Castelo Branco;
5) Parque Urbano de Rabada;
6) Parque Urbano de Gião.