Hendrik Petrus Berlage (1856-1934) Architect H.P. Berlage designed everything from napkin rings to new urban developments. But he is best known as the architect who instituted a new style of architecture in late 19th-century Holland. The 1903 Amsterdam exchange building ('Beurs van Berlage') is the earliest obvious example. His final masterpiece, the Hague Gemeentemuseum, was the crowning glory of a sizeable oeuvre of great international significance as the forerunner of modern architecture. Berlage was an ardent socialist and wished his work to elevate mankind. He disliked excessive decoration and expensive materials and wanted his buildings to attract attention by their volume, relief and silhouette. But he hardly ever confined his attentions simply to the architecture. His interventions in the interior and designs for furniture, glass and tableware frequently turned the buildings he designed into total works of art.