Life Underground (2001) is a permanent public artwork created by American sculptor Tom Otterness for the 14th Street – Eighth Avenue station (A, C, E, and L trains) of the New York City Subway.
The installation is a series of whimsical miniature bronze sculptures depicting cartoon like characters showing people and animals in various situations, and additional abstract sculptures, which are dispersed throughout the station platforms and passageways. Otterness said the subject of the work is "the impossibility of understanding life in New York"and describes the arrangement of the individual pieces as being “scattered in little surprises.”
At the Eighth Avenue subway station, sewer alligators are not an urban legend. Anyone who's been through the 14th St./Eighth Ave. station has probably seen the bronze gator sculpture — and probably wondered what it means and why it's there.
The story behind the strange 8th Ave.