Yitzchok Moully
The Art Rabbi
Yitzchok Moully is a conceptual artist whose work explores the intersection of spirituality and the material world. Having grown up in Melbourne, Australia, with formative years in Hasidic Brooklyn, Moully brings together the disparate colorful worlds of his upbringing and Chassidic culture — resulting in a unique palette of colors and ideas.
A Rabbi by training, Moully served as Youth Rabbi in Basking Ridge, NJ for ten years before fully embracing his creative practice. His work distills ethereal Chassidic concepts into relatable, participatory works of public art — menorahs, sculptures, murals, and interactive installations installed across the US, UK, and beyond.
Not as a plan, but as an evolution of spreading light from canvas into the public
In 2018, after the shooting at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh, Moully felt a deep urge to do something. The attack happened just weeks before Chanukah — the festival that calls on us to share light over darkness. Two ideas resonated profoundly: that we bring light into the world through our positive actions, and that the menorah is meant to be lit in public.
As a visual artist, he looked for a way to express that publicly. When he couldn't find a wall for the mural he imagined, he used what he had — a 30-foot RV. He covered it in black canvas with the words "Light Over Darkness" and a menorah, and drove through New York and New Jersey inviting people to write down the good deeds — mitzvot — they had done to bring light to the world.
That was 2018. What began as a response to tragedy became a yearly tradition, then a body of work, then a mission. From the RV to a touch-activated menorah, from murals to monumental public sculptures — the work has always returned to the same two ideas.
"To place the menorah proudly in public. To light up the darkness."
Today, Moully's menorahs can be found at the Seaport in New York, in London, Miami, New Jersey, LA, and beyond. His public sculptures and murals have been installed in communities, schools, and civic spaces across America and internationally.
The goal has never changed: to create Jewish pride, visibly, in the public square — and to invite every Jew to share their light with the world, proudly, publicly, and together.
The artwork is incomplete without the viewer
Central to Moully's work is the viewer — or as he would prefer, the collaborator. In many of his works, the viewer is encouraged to interact with the piece to the point where the work is incomplete without their engagement.
Perhaps all art can be viewed as a conversation between viewer and artist, but for Moully this is the essence of what he does. Lending his unique voice and personality to the common space of art and ideas, his ultimate goal is for that conversation to continue well beyond the piece of art — and into the world around us.
This is why public space matters. Not the gallery, not the museum — the street, the plaza, the entrance to a building, the wall of a school. Art belongs where life happens.
Listen & watch
Orange Socks Podcast
Exploring Jewish creativity with Yitzchok Moully. Conversations with artists, rabbis, educators, and creatives about the intersection of Jewish life and creative expression.
Listen on SpotifyHassid In Orange Socks
A mini documentary by Yisroel Silman & Berry Cohen. An intimate portrait of the artist — the Rabbi who paints, the Chassid who creates, and the man who believes art can change the world.
Watch on VimeoReady to work together?
Menorahs, sculptures, murals, interactive installations — every project starts with a conversation.
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