“The woodcut might seem like a rather staid choice for relating memories of punk rock, but in Nils Karsten’s hands, the old-fashioned printing technique—German in origin—neatly evokes the raw energy of the music scene the artist encountered as a teen in Hamburg.”

“Nils Karsten’s collages display a macabre sense of humor.”

“The destruction of innocence may be a common theme in contemporary art, but Karsten goes further than most in portraying children as both victims and perpetrators—the inevitable endgame of unprotected kids seeking their own sources of physical and sexual power.”

“While reflecting the culture’s obsession with children and sex, Karsten’s also got war and alienation on his mind, as you can see in the symbolic objects that swirl around the figures.”