Modern historians use the term baroque to indicate what?

A period in art history that lasted from the early 16th century to the early 28th century, starting in Rome, Italy. It is an era of great exuberance, and generally many items were created without the purpose of functionality in mind, for example - high ceilings in the Versailles were considered beautiful, but from a practical side were very hard to keep warm during the winter. This is the time when much more attention was given to the aesthetic instead of the functional component of art. Today it is analogue to 'kitsch', loosely translating to something that is over the top.