I grew up surrounded by different cultural influences in an old medieval city in Western Bohemia, right on the border with Germany. I always found it intriguing that all of these disparate elements were concentrated in a relatively small area. One way to perceive this difference was through objects, like the mixture of Czech, German, and Bohemian buildings. Every day as a child, I would walk past a 600-year-old Gothic fountain. You could sense the presence of the person who built it and I became taken with the idea of making things that last.
Martin Kastner, 38, is the founder and principal of Crucial Detail design studio. In collaboration with Grant Achatz of Alinea, Next, and the Aviary, Kastner creates the serviceware that delivers Achatz’s concepts to the table. In August Kastner launched a Kickstarter campaign in order to move one of his pieces, the Porthole, into larger-scale production and raised $736,112—more than 20 times his goal. As a blacksmith and multidisciplinary artist, Kastner doesn’t believe in innovation for its own sake. “I make things that need to be made.” —Sarah Nardi
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For the menu, I developed an infographic—a way to visually represent the experience. By this time Grant and Nick Kokonas were moving forward with Alinea and asked if I’d like to be involved. I said yes, I want to design the entire space! As it turns out, legally you can’t do that without being an architect, but I designed the entryway and many of the service concepts.
