Ladies and the odd gentleman who wanders in here,
I have a question for you. An assumption someone made in the story of another thread - with regards to a beautiful woman they thought must be another CD, or a lesbian - got me thinking.
One of my favourite periods of art history is the Pre-Raphaelite era, and this painting in particular is striking. I'm not going to tell you the title nor the artist, but I shall tell you that the model was quite well known, but never quite portrayed in this manner and this painting (as I've been told by a friend with several art history degrees) has caused a lot of debate over the years.
When you see this painting, what do you see? Is the figure a man or a woman? Do you see masculine or feminine traits? Or both? What stands out the most? Do you think the gender of the painted figure is due more to the model or to the painter's intent?
If you're familiar with the model, artist, or painting please don't give it away right away - I want to see what reactions this gets. I don't think I know a group of people who think more about what gender means then you all, and I'd like to see if your insights are different to the "official art community" - it's okay if they are, and okay if they aren't.