Cuypers and Art Nouveau
Belgium and the Netherlands built national monuments in historical styles. Around 1890 Brussels became the birthplace of Art Nouveau.
Pierre Cuypers designed the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, opened in 1885, and the central station in a Dutch Neo-Renaissance with Gothic features. In Brussels the Palace of Justice was built, one of the largest buildings of the 19th century.
Victor Horta’s Hôtel Tassel of 1893 is regarded as the first Art Nouveau building, with a staircase where iron grows like stems. Josef Hoffmann from Vienna designed the Palais Stoclet in Brussels, and H.P. Berlage’s exchange in Amsterdam showed a simple, honest architecture of brick.