The Avenue Louis Lepoutre in Ixelles is the backbone of the Berkendael district. Its townhouses and apartment buildings, commissioned by the city’s elite in the period just before the First World War are good examples of the typical Belgian urban lifestyle in that era, inspired by Paris, among other cities. The Beaux-Arts style predominates in this district, which has some exceptional early twentieth-century buildings, including some masterpieces, such as the Wolfers house designed by Henri Van de Velde.