One of my favorite things about the delectable duo of the Ray and Jean Armchairs by Antonio Citterio for B&B Italia is its decided gender ambiguity. Not that Citterio—or B&B for that matter—had this in mind when they named these perfectly plush yet manifestly modern and wonderfully roomy pair of chairs. Yet again, perhaps they did.

Ray Armchair. Designed by Antonio Citterio. Manfactured by B&B Italia.

The Ray and Jean Armchairs are Compact and Comfortable

Though Ray is typically a man’s name, not a few famous and fabulous females have taken the moniker (Ray Eames is tops on the list). And while Jean might be a stereotypical girl’s name, one doesn’t have to go far to find perfectly manly men who go by it (just gaze across the Atlantic to iconic architect and designer Jean Nouvel).

The point is that the Ray and Jean armchairs are hard to pin down. Both possess the “feminine” attribute of soft, welcoming contours, yet they also each exhibit the “masculine” qualities of precision ergonomics and razor sharp details.

Ray sits a bit low to the ground—all the better to get a bird’s eye view of the chair’s handsome blanket stitch tailoring and long, linear, U-shaped foot in bronzed nickel painted aluminum. According to B&B Italia, said base, in concert with the low cushion height, “contributes to the visual perception of Ray as a low sofa… this effect makes it particularly elegant.”

Jean, for its part, offers the contrast of a higher seat and minimal depth. Jean’s feet are in bright brushed (or painted) aluminum available in a multitude of colors—chalk white, desert, steel grey, or plum. Both pieces feature B&B’s signature upholstery palette, and both offer sound ergonomics and the kind of timeless yet contemporary profile that’s signature Citterio.

VIEW “RAY” ON DESIGNER PAGES

Via Otto-Otto.

About the Manufacturer: B&B Italia is certainly among the who’s who in contemporary A&D—not only in Italy, but in parts East and West as well. The company’s impressive range of furnishings for the residential and contract markets testifies to their “capacity to represent contemporary culture and respond quickly to the new needs that emerge from today’s evolving lifestyles.” Representing for B&B Italia are such iconic designers as Antonio Citterio, Naoto Fukasawa, and Zaha Hadid.