In 1995 artist Joep van Lieshout (Ravenstein, 1963) established Atelier Van Lieshout. AVL is a multidisciplinary art practice encompassing installation, design, furniture and architecture. The work stretches from sculptures to machines, from furniture design to buildings, from installations to designing utopias and distopias on an architectural level.

The name Atelier Van Lieshout emphasises the fact that the works of art do not stem solely from the creative brain of Joep van Lieshout, but are produced by a creative team of artists, designers and architects at the studio in the harbours of Rotterdam. Recurring themes in the work of AVL are autarky, power, politics and sex.