Having qualities resembling or suggesting barbarism, cruelty, or lack of civilization; styled in a deliberately rough or wild manner.
From 'barbarous' combined with the French suffix '-esque' (meaning in the style of). This artistic and descriptive term emerged to convey a rough, primitive aesthetic quality.
In art and design, 'barbaresque' became fashionable during Romanticism when artists intentionally tried to create wild, untamed looks—it's basically 'brutal chic' for the 18th century!
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