Definition
Atelier (French) — a workshop or studio, especially one used by an artist, designer, or craftsperson. It also refers to a master artist’s studio where assistants and apprentices work and train under the master, as in the traditional atelier method of art instruction.
Etymology
- Old French astelier — a carpenter’s workshop, or a pile of wood shavings
- from Old French astele — a splinter or chip of wood
- from Late Latin astella — a variant of Latin astula (a splinter or small piece of wood)
- a diminutive of Latin assis — a board or plank
The root sense ties to wood chips and splinters (the debris of a workshop), which broadened over time to mean the workshop itself, and eventually an artist’s studio.