Terri Dougherty column: Upon closer look, welding shop more like an artist’s studio

• The sign on the apartment building on Kimberly Avenue stated simply, “Van Hout Welding in back,” so I followed the sidewalk and learned a lesson. I should have known better than to have preconceived ideas, but I expected a welding shop to be a welding shop and nothing more. And at first glance, Van Hout Welding in Kimberly looks like, well, a welding shop.

  The white, cinder block building with a cement floor has welding helmets hanging on nails, various parts in bins along the walls and welding tools next to a wide work table.

  However, a closer look shows the artistic side of the building’s occupantsIn the bins are cast iron oak and palm leaves, used for creating decorative trees and vines. Ball bearings will be welded together to create grape clusters, and a sheet of copper leaning against the wall is a working fountain, imprinted with a grapevine design.

  Van Hout Welding is a welding shop, and an artist’s studio.

  Joe Van Hout and his son, Luke, are featured in today’s cover story, which focuses on the use of wrought iron in decorating. But wrought iron isn’t the only medium they use for their creations.

  Joe creates copper waterfalls and stainless steel aircraft models, in addition to decorative ironwork. He also makes stainless steel boat replicas that are on display, and for sale, at a Menasha marina.

  Joe has had knack for art since he was a student at Kimberly High School, when he was enrolled in the advanced art class as a freshman.

  “I wasn’t so good at English and math, but I excelled in art,” he said.

  Any dreams he had pursuing his artistic talent were put on hold in 1971, when got drafted. When his military obligation was over, his priority was looking for a job.

  He was working as a delivery driver when his uncle, Bill Van Hout, helped him get a job with Lee’s Contracting and Fabricating in Little Chute. He worked for Lee’s for 17 years, repairing and fabricating equipment, and also helped his uncle at the Van Hout Welding shop.

  The shop has been in the family since it was founded by Joe’s grandfather, Cornelius Van Hout, in 1934. Bill ran it after he retired from a mill job until his death in 1996.

  Joe took over the shop part-time after his uncle’s death, and Luke began working there after he graduated from Little Chute High School in 1999. Joe began working full-time at the shop last year, and has seen the business shift from entirely industrial to more requests for decorative work.

  “Now it’s almost half and half, industrial and decorative,” Joe said. “Word of mouth is getting out there.”

  Joe and Luke still make the wrought iron decorations the way Bill and Cornelius did before them. Sliding a long, thin steel rod into a metal jig, Joe grasps the end of the rod and pulls while walking backward to curve the steel.

  To twist a piece of square steel rod, Luke clamps it in place and twists it with a hand-turned crank.

  While the old equipment is still in use, they’ve put a new twist on some of the wares coming out of the shop. A dusty photo album filled with pictures of work done by Joe and Luke shows how they take ideas and bring them to life in copper, aluminum and stainless steel.

  Their work has impressed client Jim Buchinger, owner of the Main Event steak house in Little Chute, where Joe’s work is on display outside the building.

  “It’s a wonderful product and he’s so creative,” Buchinger said. “He’s just really, really particular.

  “Each piece can be so unique,” he added. “It’s not like something that’s mass-produced. It can be a signature item for any home or business.”