Not far from my home here in Washington State, at the confluence of Puget Sound and the Strait of Juan De Fuca, is Point Wilson. In 1896 Fort Worden was created there to protect Puget Sound from foreign invaders. During the following 51 years the land underwent many transformations – one being the placement of artillery fortifications to guard the entrance to the sound. Massive concrete installations built and later abandoned to house the various armaments.

For a photographer looking for shapes and structures built in concrete, it’s a goldmine. Impressive stone monoliths sitting in aging solitude as the landscape battles to overrun them.

After spending time outside shooting I was not finding much success. An open door into the darkened corridors below was my invitation to find something different. Underneath the gun placements, were shells were stored, is a maze of damp cold empty rooms. Musty dark spaces filled with graffiti and remnants of a wild party or two. A scene far removed from their original purpose at the turn of the century.

Wandering the darkened rooms the doorways and windows provided better visual opportunities than outside. Deeper into the underground labyrinth I heard the faint sound of an instrument playing a soft melody. Sitting in the nearly dark room, surrounded by painted walls, a young man had found the perfect place to practice in solitude and the picture I share today.

Searching for one opportunity and finding another. A quiet place where the sound and the light have a place to play in solitude.