This image from Cosmo (1911) could have more than one interpretation but we know which one we prefer don't we? Regardless of that it's a beautiful image despite breaking conventional rules of composition by having the two facing in opposite directions which creates a sense of awkwardness as soon as you look at the picture. Appropriately so.
Admire the unmistakeable characterisation of worker and aesthete which works not just through their clothes and actions but their faces too in an astonishing way. In 1911 this would have implied a vast cultural chasm we can barely comprehend today, think of 'Maurice'. The glimpses of flesh with both men are amazingly erotic even in our age of endless nudity and you might think it would have been shocking back then - but probably only for those who had eyes to see.
