Joep van Lieshout (1963)
'Artist, designer and butcher, who completely ignores what is and is not considered appropriate.' This is how Joep van Lieshout once described himself. Although he has developed from a painter to a versatile, all-round artist, he prefers to consider himself a builder. His fascination for the human body finds its way into independent works and commissions. His 'business' men are large, stylised figures of colourful polyester and placed in various positions. In terms of scale and model, they are derived from the human body, but inflated to impossible proportions, and can be found in surprising locations both indoors and out.
Van Lieshout earned international fame with a variety of polyester interiors that captured the interface between the visual arts, architecture and design. Furniture, bars, and toilet facilities are all found in his artistic interiors. He generally produces autonomous works, but his pieces have been known to lead to a series production or commission. Examples of his commissions include the interior of Women on Wave's controversial abortion boat (2001), the serving carts for the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the facilities in the office of the Central Museum in Utrecht and a desk of lime green polyester and wood, commissioned by Rabobank Nederland (1997). Since 1995, the artist has worked with a number of partners in Rotterdam under the name Atelier Van Lieshout (AVL).
