By the 18th century Paris had replaced Rome as the artistic center of Europe. At the French court of Louis XV a new rococo style developed. The term "rococo" comes from the French word rocaille (rock-work). Like the terms "gothic" and "baroque," it was a term of contempt—a departure from the classical conception of art. The rococo style is sometimes called the Louis XV style. The rococo style developed out of the late baroque. It was more delicate and relaxed than the baroque. It was also on a smaller scale, marked by curves and countercurves. Principally a decorative art, it expressed itself in interior architecture and design, painting, furniture, porcelain, and landscape gardening. It was first used to decorate the palaces and salons of the French aristocracy but later spread to the southern German states and Austria. The rococo style, then, was closely connected to the joyful, frivolous age of Louis XV. It aimed at delicacy and perfection of proportion. Small in scale, it had a graceful feminine character. It represented the elegance and luxury of the period.