About 8801 Sculpture Werks

8801 Sculpture Werks is a small studio dedicated to the fabrication of organic totems and outdoor sculpture by inspiration or request. Smaller works and items of use are produced by Workshop Division. I am a single-person proprietor, although I used to have a cat who regarded herself as an integral partner in design. 

I didn't arrive at sculpture through a straight line. The work found me slowly, but then quite suddenly after a tree fell on my mid-century modern house and I suddenly had a huge pile of splintered old growth roof beams and ceiling panels. What started as a fascination with material and form grew into a practice rooted in the land, in fire, and in the unique character of wood that has lived long enough to have something to say.

The Technique: Shou Sugi Ban

Shou Sugi Ban is an ancient Japanese method of wood preservation through charring. The surface of the wood is burned — deeply, often transforming its surface— and then brushed and finished to reveal the grain beneath. What's left is something truly transformed: harder, more resistant to the elements, and unmistakably dark.

I use this technique not just for its durability, but for what it does to the wood's character. Fire strips away the surface and leaves the truth of the material. Every piece that comes out of this process is singular. The flame often decides things I don't.

The Materials

I work primarily with Douglas Fir, White Oak, Black Walnut, and Locust — each chosen for its density, its grain, and the way it responds to heat and hand tools.

Douglas Fir takes the char beautifully, its tight rings holding the burn in long, dramatic lines. Black Walnut brings a richness and weight that suits smaller works and pieces meant to be handled. Locust is one of the hardest and most rot-resistant woods native to this region — it's been used for fence posts and ship timbers for centuries, and it holds up outdoors without apology.

These aren't exotic imports. They're materials with roots in this landscape, and that matters to me.

The Work

8801 Sculpture Werks produces two kinds of work: pieces made by inspiration, and pieces made by request.

The organic totems are the heart of the practice — tall, standing forms that draw from natural shapes, the suggestion of ritual, and the particular energy of a site. They're made to live outdoors, to weather and age with intention, to become part of a garden, a yard, or a landscape over time. The Shou Sugi Ban finish means they don't need to be coddled. They're built for the elements.

The Workshop Division produces smaller works and functional objects — things of use that carry the same attention to material and process as the larger sculpture. These are made for interiors as well as outdoor spaces.

Made to Order

Most of what I make is made for someone specific, for a specific place. If you have a site in mind — a corner of a garden, a courtyard, an entryway — I want to hear about it. Commissions begin with a conversation about the space, the scale, and what you're drawn to. From there, I work through material selection, form, and finish until the piece is right.

I don't rush this. Good work takes the time it takes.

If you're interested in a commission or want to know more about a piece you've seen, reach out through the Contact page. I read every message myself.

— Christopher Petite, 8801 Sculpture Werks, Bethesda, Maryland.  301-775-7568