Freshly unveiled in April 2011, SALT Beyolu is Istanbul’s newest contemporary gallery, funded by prominent Turkish bank Garanti. SALT – not a reference to the seasoning but a translation of the Turkish word for ‘pure’ – is sprinkled over six floors of the 19th-century Siniossoglou Apartmani building. Three levels of exhibition space are sandwiched between the innovative Walk-In Cinema, complete with art house documentaries and plush velvet benches, and a nascent ‘experimental edible’ rooftop garden. SALT’s opening show by late Turkish artist Hüseyin Bahri Alptekin was stellar; expect similarly cutting-edge exhibitions in the future. SALT Galata (Bankalar Caddesi) opened in October 2011. This second gallery space also holds the Ottoman Bank Museum, an auditorium, research facility, library and an awesome rooftop restaurant purveyed with perfection by the Istanbul Doors group (of Vogue and Zuma fame). Exhibitions are held over both beautiful spaces.