SALT, Istanbul

SALT is a new cultural organisation based in Istanbul, created through the merger of three existing institutions: Platform Garanti, a contemporary art gallery, Galeri Garanti, a design and architecture gallery and the Ottoman Bank Museum and Archive.

Jane Wentworth Associates’ brief was to develop a brand strategy and business plan for this new organisation that would also support the vision of the cultural activity of sponsor Garanti, a leading Turkish bank with an innovative reputation. When JWA joined the project each institution had clear strengths but collectively suffered from low visibility, limited audiences and a lack of coherence and shared vision. There was also a limited return on investment for Garanti. JWA developed a strategy based on the idea of ‘the institute of difference’, an institute of learning and debate. Here was an opportunity to create something different. A brand that claimed a new space in an overcrowded marketplace and that would help engage new audiences.

JWA worked with the client to select a new name for the organisation and a model for the brand architecture. The name and its distinct visual identity convey the ambition that, like salt on food, they want to make a difference to how people experience life, making it more piquant, stimulating and complete.