Celebrating the joy of Chanukah by making public art

NOMI KALTMANN meets YITZCHOK MOULLY, an artist whose vibrant public menorahs and murals have struck a chord in the US, and now in England.

Australian-American artist Yitzchak Moully loves Chanukah. “The only [unalterable law], the only thing that you can’t break is eight flames in a row. Everything else is up for grabs,” he says.

Each year, the 44-year-old artist initiates the creative process of making huge public art menorahs from his home in Brooklyn, New York, in the months leading up to the festival, engaging in brainstorming sessions.

“The menorahs I make are sculptural pieces of art that are appealing to a wide audience. You can make it on Chanukah and make a [blessing] on it, but the designs push the envelope. I get as creative as I possibly can,” he tells The Jewish Independent Media.

With his eye for unusual beauty and symmetry, his unique menorahs are a hit. “It’s exciting to throw out everything you know about a menorah and just have that one rule and work at it from there. I have many designs,” he said, referring to the menorahs he has been commissioned to make, both in the US and overseas.

Born in Darwin, Moully spent a few years living in New York as a child, before finishing his schooling at Yeshivah College in Melbourne. He worked for many years as a Chabad rabbi on campus in America, before committing himself full-time to his art. He calls himself the Pop Hasid.

His creations synthesise his orthodox upbringing. his former role as a former campus rabbi and his artistic interests.