Elmore has clearly stated the painting's character is, and always was, male. The Wizkids miniature was intended to be a woman. So both of those statements should be considered "official". The wording in the article should be clarified to denote that.
I've heard this game/setting mentioned so many times in podcasts I listen to that I had to back it as well. I've heard good things about it using an evolution of the Year Zero game engine, as that was one of the complaints I saw about the older edition.