NEW ORLEANS (WPVI) -- He's called the "King of Mardi Gras."
And his castle can be found at a sprawling warehouse on the banks of the Mississippi. It looks like a child's imagination coming to life.
Barry Kern is the third-generation creative genius behind what's officially known as Kern Studios and Mardi Gras World. But it might more aptly be called a "factory of fun."
"This is Mardi Gras World. The home of where we gulf all these floats," said Kern.
Within these walls, hundreds of Mardi Gras floats, parade props, and large-scale foam statues go from idea to reality, then to parades clear across America, including our very own, 6abc Dunkin' Thanksgiving Day Parade.
And it all begins with a robot named Pixie whose robotic arm carves the contours of anything the mind can conceive.
Eventually, human artists get to work, giving what Pixie made a personality.
Steven Villano is one of those artists toiling over every detail, often for hours on end.
"Making Mardi Gras is why the artists are here, and I'm the same way. I love making Mardi Gras," he says.
And that's the motivating force at work here - more than just fabricating floats and producing props. They're building something that brings people together, whether that's in New Orleans this week or back home on Thanksgiving.
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