Chryssa was born in Athens in 1933 and ranks as one of the most outstanding and innovative artists working in America today. She studied at the Academic de la Grande Chaumiere, Paris, and moved to the United States in the 1950's. She attended the California School of Fine Art in 1954-55.

When she arrived in New York, she became enthralled with the bright lights of Times Square, which has had a profound influence on her work. According to Chryssa, "I saw Times Square with its lights and letters, and I realized it was as beautiful and difficult to do as Japanese calligraphy....In Times Square, the sky is like the gold of Byzantine mosaics or icons." Chryssa has transformed these signs into her own mysterious symbols and images. Much of her works is "Luminist" sculpture in brilliantly colored neon tubing.

Her works have been exhibited in numerous galleries and museums, including the Guggenheim Museum, Museum of Modern Biennale, Venice; Biennale, Sao Paulo and Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Currently, she is completing an 8-story, monumental, modular neon light sculpture commission for installation in the atrium of a new Chicago skyscraper.

Museum collections include the Museum of Modern Art, Whitney Museum of American Art, Guggenheim Museum, New York; Albright-Knox Art Gallery, Buffalo, N.Y. and Walker Art Center, Minneapolis. Among the many articles and books about her work is the major book, CHRYSSA (Harry N. Abrams, pub.).