Her work, both poetic and dynamic- as dynamic as the New York environment is- ranks her among the most pioneering and acclaimed sculptors of the contemporary art scene.

Chryssa’s Greek heritage became also apparent on her major work “Cycladic Books” a series of plaster geometrical sculptures created in the mid-1950’s.

A milestone in Chryssa’s work is the sculptural complex “The Gates to Times Square”, a tribute to the urban New York landscapes, presented in 1968 at the Grand Central Terminal, New York.

During the 1970’s Chryssa executed a series of Neon sculptures and inspired by her frequent visits to New York’s Chinatown executed a series of Chinese Cityscapes using the oriental script into monochromatic palettes. Chinatown and the Urban landscape of New York also inspired Chryssa to create a series of wall reliefs worked on several years, beginning around 1980. In these sculptures the artist fashioned large characters -Chinese or Latin and later on Greek – out of metal and joined them in compositions that project from the wall in an imposing manner. These elements are placed both perpendicular to and parallel to the wall, while fluorescent or neon tubes are placed about the curved metal surfaces and emphasize the volumes and outlines of the abstract compositions.

Chryssa’s works are included in the collections of the Metropolitan, the Guggenheim and the Museum of Modern Art and the Whitney in New York, the Albright Knox in Buffalo, the Hirshorn Museum-Smithsonian Institution of Washington, the Tate Gallery in London and in many museums, public and private collections around the world.

In Greece, sculptures by Chryssa are permanently exhibited at the Athens Metro station and the entrance of the Athens Megaron Concert Hall. Her works can also be found at the National Gallery of Athens, the Macedonian Museum of Contemporary Art in Thessaloniki and at the European Cultural Centre of Delphi.

Mihalarias Art gallery has had a long time cooperation with the artist, and has presented through major exhibitions the most important aspects of her work. In 1990 with a major retrospective Chryssa 60/90 to the more recent ones such as “Homage to Peace” in 2007 and “Memories of Chinatown and American Cityscapes” in 2010.

Chryssa passed away in December 2013 in Athens. She bequeathed some of her sculptures to the National Museum of Contemporary Art in Athens. With her will, she appointed Stavros Mihalarias, in charge of the authentication of her work, the restoration and technical advice related to her works as well as the right to produce a catalogue raisonné.

Selected Bibliography

• Chryssa ed.P.Restany, published by Abrams Editions Inc, New York, 1977
• Chryssa Cityscapes ed. D. Schultz Ed.Thames & Hudson Inc., New York, 1990
• Chryssa Cycladic Books 1957-1962 Itanos Editions,Crete,Greece 1992.
• Chryssa Cine Oasis 1990-99 text T.Mavrotas Itanos editions, Athens.
• Chryssa Cycladic Books 1957-1962 N.Goulandris Foundation-Museum of Cycladic Art, Athens, September 1997
• Chryssa Contemporary Greek Artists, by T. Mavrotas, edited by NEA, Athens 2009.
• Chryssa 60-90, Mihalarias Art, Athens, May 1990
• Major Creators of the 20th century European Cultural Centre Delphi, Greece, Summer 2000
• Chryssa Mihalarias Art, Athens, Dec.2001-Jan.2002.
• Chryssa Paintings, Mihalarias Art, Athens, May 2005.
• Chryssa- Homage to Peace, Mihalarias Art, Athens, April 2007.
• Chryssa, Memories of Chinatown and Memories of American Cityscapes, Mihalarias Art, Athens, June-July 2010
• Chryssa Cycladic Books, Mihalarias Art at Art Athina 2018, Athens

Full CV