Pop Artist, Chassidic Rabbi to Display His Unique Artwork at North Shore Jewish Art Co-op
By Bella diGrazia
LYNN — To celebrate the opening of the North Shore Jewish Art Co-op, Yitzchok Moully, a pop art artist and Chasidic Rabbi, will display his unique artwork at the launch event on Feb. 27.
When the last remaining synagogue in Lynn was going to be sold, members of the Chabad Lubavitch of the North Shore did everything they could to keep the “treasure” in the Jewish and Lynn communities, according to Rabbi Yossi Lipsker. Thanks to a generous donation from North Shore natives Richard and Dorothy Tatelman, the 151 Ocean St. building will now be a multi-functional Jewish center that focuses on all forms of art.
“We all felt it was important to preserve it and keep it going,” said Lipsker. “One of our dreams was to create a center on the North Shore that focused on Jewish arts and culture of every form, from dance, to music, to different displayed art forms.”
The Chabad Lubavitch of the North Shore, a Jewish educational network, has branches in Everett and Peabody, with their headquarters on Burrill Street in Swampscott. Lipsker said they are thrilled at the addition of their new co-operative Lynn campus.
“We are about to launch a curriculum that has many local art teachers and offer it to a wider community,” said Lipsker. “We are holding this art gallery night as a kick-off to celebrate this milestone. We are super excited about it.”
The official launch party will be at the new campus, from 6:45 to 9 p.m., at $18 a ticket. Guests can enjoy locally brewed craft beer samples and beer-braised short rib burgers, topped with whiskey mustard mayo, while viewing Moully’s post pop artwork on display in New England for the first time.
Moully, better known as the “Pop Art Rabbi,” has been painting for almost a decade, according to Lipsker. He is known for his exploration of Jewish and Chasidic concepts through Jewish imagery in the classic pop art style and his work became recognizable on calendars and Purim gift sets.
To RSVP for the event, go to their website, www.nsjewish.com.
Once it’s launched and ready to go, Lipsker said the center will be home to major functions, a summer camp, and organizations that focus on bigger initiatives, such as making sure every Lynn-born kid has his or her own car seat. There will also be an array of classes for members to take part in, including artisanal bread making, hip-hop Jewish dance fusion, and portrait drawing.
The Lynn building was formerly known as a gathering place for many Jewish members who were born in the former Soviet Union, according to Lipsker. It is like a second home to them, he said, which is why the campus will keep their various social activities.
“One of the beautiful things about this facility in Lynn is it’s a way to create a bridge between communities like Swampscott and Marblehead that might not necessarily be exposed to the lives of people living in Lynn, for example,” said Lipsker.