In the arts, the Baroque was a Western cultural period, starting roughly at the beginning of the 17th century in Rome, Italy. It was exemplified 例证by drama and grandeur ['grændʒə] 庄严,伟大in sculpture, painting, literature, dance, and music.

The popularity and success of the Baroque style was encouraged by the Roman Catholic Church, which had decided at the time of the Council of Trent特伦特 that the arts should communicate religious themes in direct and emotional involvement.  The aristocracy [.æris'tɔkrəsi] 贵族 also saw the dramatic style of Baroque architecture and art as a means of impressing visitors and expressing triumphant power and control. Baroque palaces are built around an entrance of courts, grand staircases and reception rooms of sequentially [si'kwenʃəli]顺序地,继续地 increasing opulence ['ɔpjuləns]富裕(丰富). In similar profusions [prə'fju:ʒən]丰多,大量of detail, art, music, architecture, and literature inspired each other in the Baroque cultural movement as artists explored what they could create from repeated and varied patterns. Some traits and aspects of Baroque paintings that differentiate this style from others are the abundant amount of details, often bright polychromy ['pɔlikrəumi]色彩装饰,多色画法, less realistic faces of subjects, and an overall sense of awe [ɔ:]敬畏, which was one of the goals in Baroque art.

According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the word baroque is derived from the Portuguese  [.pɔ:tju'gi:z] word "barroco", Spanish "barroco", or French "baroque", all of which refer to a "rough or imperfect pearl", though whether it entered those languages via Latin, Arabic, or some other source is uncertain. In informal usage, the word baroque can simply mean that something is "elaborate"精细的,详尽的, with many details, without reference to the Baroque styles of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.

巴洛克（—Baroque）此字源于西班牙语及葡萄牙语的“变形的珍珠”(—barroco)。作为形容词，此字有“俗丽凌乱”之意。欧洲人最初用这个词指“缺乏古典主义均衡特性的作品”，它原是18世纪崇尚古典艺术的人们，对17世纪不同于文艺复兴风格的一个带贬抑的称呼，现今这个词已失去了原有的贬抑，仅指17世纪风行于欧洲的一种艺术风格。

虽然“巴洛克”直指缺乏古典均衡性的艺术作品，但其实巴洛克艺术家，与文艺复兴的前辈相同，都很重视设计和效果的整体统一性，巴洛克风格以强调“运动”与“转变”为特点，尤其是身体和情绪方面的，同时，巴洛克也是对矫饰主义的一种反动。

在欧洲文化史中，“巴洛克”惯指的时间是17世纪以及18世纪上半叶(约1600年 -1750年），但年份并不代表绝对的艺术风格，特别是建筑与音乐。这一时期，上接文艺复兴(1452年 -1600年)，下接古典时期、浪漫时期。

欧洲文化“除旧布新”，在各方面都有重大的改变与成就。资产阶级兴起，君主政治渐独立于宗教之外(但民主思想萌芽)。科学在伽利略、牛顿等人的开创下展开。艺术上趋势是“世俗化”，精力充沛，勇于创新，甚至好大喜功。文艺上的名家如莎士比亚、塞万提斯；绘画上有鲁本斯，伦勃朗等，影响都极深远。也在这时期，欧洲向外扩张殖民，渐渐占据了世界文明的中心。

Baroque architecture

In Baroque architecture, new emphasis was placed on bold massing, colonnades, domes, light-and-shade (chiaroscuro), 'painterly' color effects, and the bold play of volume and void. In interiors, Baroque movement around and through a void informed monumental staircases that had no parallel in previous architecture. The other Baroque innovation in worldly interiors was the state apartment, a processional sequence of increasingly rich interiors that culminated in a presence chamber or throne room or a state bedroom. The sequence of monumental stairs followed by a state apartment was copied in smaller scale everywhere in aristocratic dwellings of any pretensions.

Baroque architecture was taken up with enthusiasm in central Germany (see e.g. Ludwigsburg Palace and Zwinger Dresden), Austria and Russia (see e.g. Peterhof). In England the culmination of Baroque architecture was embodied in work by Sir Christopher Wren, Sir John Vanbrugh and Nicholas Hawksmoor, from ca. 1660 to ca. 1725. Many examples of Baroque architecture and towns planning are found in other European towns, and in Latin America. Town planning of this period featured radiating avenues intersecting in squares, which took cues from Baroque garden plans.In Sicily, Baroque developed new shapes and themes as in Noto, Ragusa and Acireale "Basilica di San Sebastiano"

巴洛克建筑是欧洲17世纪和18世纪初的巴洛克艺术风格中的一个层面。17世纪起源于意大利的罗马，后传至德、奥、法、英、西葡，直至拉丁美洲的殖民地。从语源学上讲，巴洛克是一切杂乱、奇异、不规则、流于装饰的代名词。而这一时期的建筑也确实体现了这一点。它能用直观的感召力给教堂、府邸的使用者以震撼，而这正是天主教教会的用意（让更多的异教徒皈依）