Joep van Lieshout
Joep van Lieshout (born 1963), is a Dutch artist and sculptor born in Ravenstein, Netherlands, and founder of Atelier Van Lieshout (AVL). Life and work. Van Lieshout received his formal education and training from the Academy of Modern Art in Rotterdam (1980–1985), Ateliers '63 in Haarlem (1985–1987), and from the Villa Arson in Nice, France (1987). In 1995 Van Lieshout formed the Atelier Van Lieshout (AVL) studio group in Rotterdam, Netherlands, where the company continues to design and fabricate their widely exhibited works. Atelier Van Lieshout has attained international recognition for objects-based projects that balance on  the boundary between art, architecture and design. Recurring themes in the work of AVL include self-sufficiency, power, politics, and the more classical themes of life and death. The name Atelier Van Lieshout emphasizes the fact that, although Joep van Lieshout founded and leads the collective, the work produced stems from the creative impulses of the entire team. One of his notable public artwork is Funky Bones, located in the , Atelier Van Lieshout. Atelier Van Lieshout (AVL) is the studio of sculptor Joep van Lieshout founded in 1995 in Rotterdam, Netherlands, where the company continues to create and fabricate their  widely exhibited works. The name Atelier Van Lieshout emphasizes the fact that, although Joep van Lieshout founded and leads the studio, the work produced stems from the creative impulses of the entire team. Recurring themes in the work of Atelier Van Lieshout include self-sufficiency, power, politics, and the more classical themes of life and death. Atelier Van Lieshout has attained international recognition for objects-based projects that balance on the boundary between art, architecture and design. Concept development. Atelier Van Lieshout's most relevant recurring themes are domestication, politics, complex functioning systems, and the re-contextualization of familiar, domestic  objects. The Atelier van Lieshout claims to make no distinction between "real artworks" and "just building something for someone." Joep van Lieshout focuses on creating artworks whose design principles challenge conventional ideas of utility and functionality by reinventing how the viewer perceives or approaches an object and the environment in which it is placed. This is achieved by the implementation of non-traditional materials and color palettes, odd or unusual subject matter, and through the strategic positioning or locale of the artwork. For example, in the 2010 public artwork "Funky Bones" it is impossible to see in its entirety except  at a distance, preferably from above. Moving close enough to actually interact with it produces an entirely different perspective. AVL-Ville. AVL-Ville is the Free State of Atelier Van Lieshout in the Rotterdam harbour during the Rotterdam Cultural Capital year 2001. Originally designed as a place for experiments and inventions for the city of Almere. After Almere rejected the proposal Atelier Van Lieshout decided to realize its pioneer city on own property in the Rotterdam harbour. The Autocrat and Workshop for Weapons & Bombs found a home along with new works like the Pioneer Set and AVL Transport. AVL-Ville  also created its own flag, its own constitution and its own currency. Domestikator Louvre controversy. On 17 October 2017 the President of the Louvre in Paris, Jean-Luc Martinez objecting to the work "Domestikator" (2015) to the atelier Van Lieshout work an architectural sculpture in which two interlocking buildings appear to be engaged in a sexual act pulled it from the exhibition Hors Les Murs, (Foire Internationale d'Art Contemperain's outdoor program of architectural projects, sculptures, performances, and sound pieces that runs concurrently to the fair) held in the Tuileries Garden where it would have been displayed nearby a playground  and instead the work was displayed by the Centre Georges Pompidou in the front square outside of that art institution for a simultaneous run.