Exhibition that traces the reach of salt from Peru's terraced ponds to Austria's ancient mines, with a tasting station.
Salt: A Design Story is on view at the Museum of Design Atlanta, 1315 Peachtree Street Northeast. It's an exhibition that takes one of the most essential yet overlooked materials on earth—salt—and traces its reach from Peru's terraced ponds to Austria's ancient mines.
Salt is everywhere: oceans, deserts, mountains, and deep underground. The show pulls together geology, history, food science, craft, ritual, and architecture to show how a single mineral has driven design across every era and culture. It's the kind of thing that shaped where cities rose, how money moved, and which empires survived. You follow that reach across geography, from those terraced ponds in Peru to the ancient mines of Austria, and look at the ingenious ways people extracted, transported, stored, and traded it. From there, the exhibition lands on the objects we recognize—salt cellars, whimsical salt and pepper shakers, and the burgeoning craft salt movement of today.
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There's a tasting station where you can sample salts from around the world and design your own salt and pepper shaker. If you're looking for something more guided, there's an exhibit tour on Saturday, July 25, from 3:00 to 4:00 PM. Otherwise, the exhibition is on view now. Admission is $5 for MODA members and $15 for non-members.
