Navy Steel, Sleepless Nights, and the Tools That Sparked a Mission
Steve Kost has journeyed from being a Navy Seabee to a union ironworker and now a scrap metal artist. He uses welding and the Markal® markers he has relied on since boot camp. Through his art, he transforms scrap metal into stories that help him cope with PTSD.
Discover how Metal Health Artwork saved his life and continues to inspire others, one sculpture at a time.
Steve Kost isn’t just a welder or an ironworker. He’s a fighter. A survivor. And an artist on a mission.
He grew up in Downers Grove, Illinois, just west of Chicago, where the family garage was more of a hands-on workshop than storage. His dad was a racecar driver and a bit of a handyman. “My dad was always fixing something—cars, stuff around the house—and I was right there next to him,” Steve says. “That’s how I learned my way around tools.”
By high school, that early spark led Steve into welding. His shop teacher always let him come in before class to practice and guided him to improve his skills. “It felt magical,” Steve says. “Just me, the metal, and the sparks flying.”
▱ Navy Days
At age 17, Steve joined the Navy as a hull technician, a sailor who fixes a ship’s body damage. In boot camp, he picked up a tool he’d never put down: a Markal® Paint-Riter® Valve Action® paint marker.
Recruits used them to stencil names on uniforms and gear. However, they were more often used in building or repair jobs, helping to mark steel plates, weld zones, and cut lines.
“At sea, there’s no one coming to save you,” Steve says. “You need to fix it yourself.”
Steve trained hard, earned top marks, and joined the Navy Seabees, a construction battalion that builds everything from runways to housing, often in dangerous places.
One of those places was Mogadishu, Somalia, in the early ’90s. Steve’s unit was first on the ground, repairing runways and clearing beaches. There were moments under fire he would never forget. “I didn’t know it then,” Steve says, “but those experiences left marks you can’t see.”
▱ Coming Home, Carrying the Weight
After four years in the Navy, Steve came home, married his high school sweetheart, and went to work. First as a fabricator, then a union ironworker. High steel gave him a new kind of brotherhood.
“Being an ironworker is dangerous work,” he says. “You trust your crew with your life, just like in the service.”
“Being an ironworker is dangerous work. You trust your crew with your life, just like in the service.”
But while Steve was building skyscrapers, he was also carrying something heavy inside. Loud noises set him on edge. Fourth of July fireworks meant anxiety, not celebration. He didn’t know it yet, but he was living with PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder).
“I just kept going. Working, raising a family, pushing through,” Steve says. “But the truth is, it was always there.”
▱ Sleepless Nights, A New Mission
In 2010, when the economy slowed and construction jobs dried up, Steve reluctantly went to the VA. That’s when he began to see a counselor and heard the diagnosis he had been avoiding, PTSD. “I didn’t want to believe it at first,” he says. “But once I accepted it, I knew I had to find a way to cope.”
One restless night in 2015, Steve found an old typewriter in his garage while patrolling the house. He started taking it apart, piece by piece, just to keep his hands busy and mind focused.
Soon, he was fitting the pieces back together as small metal creatures. Crabs, bugs, robots. Before long, he was welding again. Not for a paycheck, but for peace.
“Welding gave my brain a break,” Steve says. “It was just me, the metal, and the work in front of me.”
He began gathering scrap wherever he could. Junkyards, old job sites, and even donated tools from fellow tradespeople. Each piece had its own history, its own story.
“A wrench from another veteran’s toolbox isn’t just metal,” he says. “It’s a connection.”
“A wrench from another veteran’s toolbox isn’t just metal, it’s a connection.”
This was the birth of Metal Health Artwork, Steve’s way of coping with PTSD by transforming discarded scrap metal and cast-off parts into sculptures that carry meaning and hope.
Since then, veterans’ galleries, VA art programs, and mental health awareness campaigns have displayed Steve’s work. More importantly, it’s opened conversations with other veterans and tradespeople looking for ways to cope with trauma.
▱ The Marking Tools That Stayed
Through every chapter—Navy, fabrication, ironworking, art—a welder, a grinder, and a simple marking tool have stayed close: Markal® markers.
His first Paint-Riter® Valve Action® paint marker showed up in boot camp. At first, it was for stenciling names on uniforms and gear. But soon, it became an integral part of the toolbox for marking plates, weld zones, and cut lines when working with metals and construction materials. That reliability stuck with him.
As an ironworker, he used Markal® markers to lay out cuts on steel beams, mark openings in corrugated decking, and highlight edges for grinding. Now, in his garage workshop, they’re just as important.
“I’ve been using them for many years on job sites. I really like Markal® paint markers. I use them in my studio almost every day,” Steve says. For sketching, cutting, and even adding finishing touches. “They’re simple, tough, and they work every time, just like the best tools should.”
“They (Markal® markers) are simple, tough, and they work every time, just like the best tools should.”
▱ Finding His People
In 2019, Steve entered ScrapFest, a scrap metal art competition in Lansing, Michigan. He found himself surrounded by like-minded artists turning discarded scrap metal into something powerful and new. Now a regular in the ScrapFest community, Steve’s pieces stand out for their storytelling and symbolism.
“These are my people,” he says. “They know the work, the satisfaction, and they know what it means to take something broken and make it whole again.”
ScrapFest isn’t just about art, it’s about skill, craft, and community. Markal® is one of the proud sponsors, providing industrial markers for artists to create with throughout the event.
“You see them everywhere during ScrapFest,” Steve says. “People marking their cuts, sketching layouts on scrap, even adding fine details to finished pieces. It’s the same tool that workers trust on the job site; it just happens to work perfectly in the art world too.”
For Steve, seeing so many metal artists rely on the same marking tools he’s carried since boot camp is a reminder of the connection between trades and art. “It’s one more thing that unites us,” he says.
▱ More Than Metal Art
People sometimes ask Steve if his sculptures are about combat. He tells them no; they’re about moving beyond it.
“I’m not recreating destruction,” he says. “I’m building something better. Every piece I make is proof that you can take the hardest parts of your life and turn them into something strong.”
"Every piece I make is proof that you can take the hardest parts of your life and turn them into something strong.”
For Steve, the welder, a grinder, the scrap pile, and a Markal® marker aren’t just tools. They’re lifelines. They’re part of how he quiets his mind, tells his story, and connects with others still fighting battles no one else can see.
“Metal Health Artwork saved my life,” Steve says. “If my work inspires even one person to keep going, then it’s worth every late night in the shop.”
▱ Recognition and Impact
Today, Steve’s sculptures have been showcased at ScrapFest, displayed in veterans’ galleries, highlighted in VA art programs, and featured in mental health awareness campaigns.
His work has also been recognized by national media, including PBS, ABC7 Chicago News, and, in 2024, the Veterans Day Google Doodle homepage, bringing his message of resilience to millions.
Each piece is more than steel—it’s survival, strength, and connection.
Meet Steve, see his work, and learn about Markal®’s role in supporting tradespeople and industrial artists alike at FABTECH Chicago in Markal® Booth #33054.
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About Markal®/LACO Industries
Markal® is a brand owned by LACO Industries, a global manufacturing company specializing in industrial products since 1934. Its mission is to complete the world’s jobs through ink and paint expertise. Brands of LACO Industries include: Markal® hand-held industrial markers, Tempil® temperature indicators, LA-CO® industrial chemicals, All-Weather® livestock identification products, and Tempilink® specialty inks.
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