Why “salt?” — Our Values

One of the very first processes for turning a negative image into a positive print — or developing a photograph — was called the Salt Print. Early photographers soaked paper in a solution made from table salt followed by a strong silver solution, forming a coating of silver nitrate that was sensitive to light. In using table salt, a whole artistic practice was created.

Salt transforms everything it touches. Salt seasons, preserves, and draws out the best. As a foundational element of the visual arts and instrumental in photography, our program strives to incorporate the ways that salt enhances the world around us. Like salt, photographs preserve how we remember the world—and they are world-making tools in themselves. Our partnership with underserved communities immerses young artists across NYC within this incredible process of creation, engaging our core values with the intersections of salt and visual arts.

  • Just as salt is essential for physiological balances, arts opportunities are vital in fostering a well-rounded education. The arts are an outlet for self-expression, allowing students to explore and uncover their own identities. The arts enrich critical thinking by offering new perspectives, forging communities, and teaching students to tell stories. In its most basic sense, the arts allow students to just make something, experiment, and gain confidence in taking risks.

  • In its microcosmic form, salt forms strong bonds between sodium and chloride. Salt can also bond with other substances to create something entirely new. Our educational philosophy implements collaboration and peer-to-peer learning frameworks to promote curiosity, engagement, and connection. Our experiential learning opportunities, such as hands-on field trips and guest artists or speakers, allow students to form relationships with all kinds of creative communities.

  • Digital photography is a unique storytelling tool that allows students to capture and share what is around them. It is special not only because of its ability to preserve a moment or memory but also because of how far digital photography can travel through both time and space. Salt’s almost supernatural ability to preserve mirrors the legacy of digital photography and the broader ways in which arts education immortalizes expression, creativity, and culture across generations.

    Specifically, our program also values longevity as centering around our long-term investment in our students. We understand that support does not end with graduation or a college acceptance and a job offer—we offer life-long connections, programs, and access to our studio to sustain NYC Salt’s creative community and encourage continuous use of our resources.

  • Salt is a common and accessible resource. The divestment of the arts in low-income communities by federal, local, and social edifices results in detrimental, far-reaching effects. We believe that arts education programs are as essential as salt.