Since 2011, Salt Research has brought together a specialized library and archive to support the production of knowledge and make resources accessible. Its collections, which include a wide range of sources from rare pre-1930 printed works to contemporary books and journals, yearbooks, travelogues, encyclopedias, and albums, are available for free to researchers. With archive collections containing over 22 million documents and a publication collection housing more than 100,000 printed sources, Salt Research creates a rich resource for scholars, artists, and independent researchers from various disciplines.
The publication collection, which can be examined within the Salt Research spaces, focuses on topics related to art, the built environment, social life, and economic history. Art publications cover a wide geographical area, including post-1950 Turkey, Eastern Europe, the Eastern Mediterranean, Asia, and Latin America. These materials encompass theory, history, curation, exhibition history, exhibition catalogs, artist monographs, and fields such as photography and cinema. Publications related to the built environment examine the development of architecture and design in 20th-century Turkey, with a focus on topics like architectural history, urban studies, conservation, and cultural heritage. Publications on social life and economic history provide comparative readings on the societal transformations of the last two centuries, using sources in Turkish, English, Ottoman Turkish, French, Armenian, and other languages.
Since 2013, the Salt Research Funds have aimed to support users’ research processes and help them make the best use of Salt Research collections. These funds, which have supported 80 projects to date, promote interdisciplinary approaches and encourage field research and creative methods.
In addition to supporting research processes, Salt Research aims to encourage the sharing and production of knowledge. In this context, the Salt Researchers presentation series focuses on works carried out in conjunction with Salt Research’s archive and publication collections and spatial resources. Through this series, research carried out using the collections is presented on a public platform. The series explores what areas users are researching, which documents they consult most frequently, and how these sources contribute to their work, also enabling knowledge and experience sharing among users.
The Amateur Archiving workshops led by the Salt Research team focus on individual archiving practices, starting with the question, “How is an archive created?” These workshops open up a discussion on the concept of the archive through practices in Salt Research, covering processes like archive creation, preservation, digitization, and access.
Another program, Out of the Archive, aims to present and open for discussion the multi-layered structure of the documents and sources in Salt Research beyond conventional narratives. Documents are presented in various formats, such as exhibitions, texts, writings, and digital content, following expert commentary. The program prepares the ground for new questions and discoveries for researchers and curious minds beyond academic production.
The programs organized around Salt Research cover not only archiving and research methods but also the development of knowledge production processes, the exploration of archiving practices, and fields like publishing and librarianship. In this regard, the institution aims to foster interaction with its users and encourage collaborative production.
