Louis Kern

Louis Kern, born in Chicago and raised on a farm in Iowa, is now based in Oakland, Calif. As a furniture maker and master stair builder, specializing in grand and storybook spiral staircases, Kern was drawn to the San Francisco area because of all the Victorian homes and their tradition of grand woodwork. He landed in Oakland because prices got too high in San Francisco, a classic artisan’s lament. A decorated U.S. Marine, he saw combat in Vietnam as a radio operator and team leader.