There are actually a lot of 19th century paintings that are read by critics today as either erotic or homo-erotic, when its clear the painting doesn't really contain that type of sentiment and the artist didn't have that type of intention. I think some of this is because they as practicing art were sensitive towards the body, and because today people are so ready to interpret things sexually, and inhibited from being sensitive in ways that may be interpreted sexually, many modern critics misread any sensitivity as sexual feeling on the artist's part.
