 Pevsner regarded the style as a prelude to Modernism, which used simple forms without ornamentation.The earliest Arts and Crafts activity in continental Europe was in Belgium in about 1890, where the English style inspired artists and architects including Henry Van de Velde, Gabriel Van Dievoet, Gustave Serrurier-Bovy and a group known as "La Libre Esthétique" (Free Aesthetic).Arts and Crafts products were admired in Austria and Germany in the early 20th century, and under their inspiration design moved rapidly forward while it stagnated in Britain.