Joep van Lieshout was born in Ravenstein, Holland in 1963. He studied at the Academy of Modern Art in Rotterdam, Ateliers '63 in Haarlem and Villa Arson in Nice.

In 1995 he founded Atelier van Lieshout in Rotterdam that carries out projects in the field of architecture, design and contemporary art. Since 1995 Atelier van Lieshout, AVL, challenges the idea of the individual creator and is conceived as a working team for the collective design of sculptures, furniture, complete architectural refurbishments and mobile home units.