Subway Daemons

You can see the most remarkable things if only you open your eyes. The other day I had a job interview in Chelsea, which is pretty far from home. I arrived almost half an hour early, and you can only wander around CVS for so long before they think you're trying to steal something. So I shambled out onto the sidewalk without a thought in my head as to what I should do for my remaining twenty minutes. That's when I just happened to notice this little creature:

What luck, to run across such a portly and officious little police woman (though I've vacillated about its gender, since its features, and its adiposity, are decidedly masculine, but there are two fairly distinct indicators of ladyhood). She even comes complete with gun, badge, and nightstick. I stepped back a pace to get a picture of her milieu:

As you can see, she perches to the left of the Subway elevator, guarding the door from nighttime rapscallions. It wasn't until after the interview on my way back to East Harlem that I realized that I had missed her companion, who stands above the elevator looking downwards.

Upon further research, I learned that these two are just part of a much more extensive art installation at that station called Life Underground. I couldn't help but think of the daemons found in Greek Mythology. These are lesser gods or spirits who attend and protect mortals, or take stewardship over some natural feature. We don't have many wooded groves to oversee in the city, so I guess these daemons protect their local subway stop from danger.