Orange Socks Podcast Exploring Jewish Art and Creativity with Yitzchok Moully

Mendy Portnoy shares his journey from a musical London household to becoming a producer, performer, and creative force behind projects like Thank You Hashem. Growing up surrounded by siblings who sang and played instruments, Mendy discovered his gift for music by ear long before formal lessons. He reflects on learning piano out of curiosity and sibling rivalry, the soulful influences that shaped his sound, and the deep sense of con...

Menachem Silverstein is Known for wearing many hats, he reflects on how each role—from writing commercials to directing and producing—opened doors to the next stage of his career - stand up comedy. He talks about the unique challenges of balancing his Orthodox Jewish identity with life in Hollywood, and how authenticity became the key to connecting with audiences.

In this conversation, we explore what it means to “make it” as a come...

Moshe Shamah, fresh from his U.S. art tour, brings the perspective of an Israeli artist who bridges worlds—diaspora and homeland, religious and secular, analog and digital. We sat together in front of my mural HaMelech Basadeh and explored how his art became a response to the upheaval after October 7th, and how collage, for him, is not just cutting and pasting but transforming chaos into new meaning. Moshe shared how his Judaica, a...

Alter Deitsch is a creative force behind the Sababa Music Festival and Torah VR.

In this engaging conversation, Alter shares his journey from a traditional upbringing in Crown Heights to exploring various creative outlets. Discover the story behind Sababa Fest, a unique Jewish music festival that unites diverse Jewish communities in celebration. Alter also delves into the innovative Torah VR project, which aims to transform Torah le...

Seth (Shmuel) Robbins is a Milwaukee-based photographer whose lens captures the quiet tensions and transcendent beauty of Jewish life. His debut book A Trustworthy Home explores Jewish weddings as portals into the sacred, weaving images of ritual, intimacy, and spiritual depth. 

In this conversation, Seth shares how photography helps him hold space for the unseen—between people, traditions, and communities. We explore his creative p...

About Moshe:

Moshe Sobol is a professional musician, drummer, percussionist, Board Certified Music Therapist (MT-BC), and Licensed Creative Arts Therapist (LCAT) in the state of New York. Moshe’s musical pedigree runs in the family. His father was a master clarinetist, concert producer, and educator and his mother is a concert pianist and teacher who continues to make contributions to the field of music education for special learner...

Yocheved Sidof is a writer, educator, and creative thinker whose work has long explored the intersection of spirituality and self-expression. In this episode, she reflects on her creative journey—from her early years in photography and filmmaking to launching a progressive Hasidic Montessori school, and now building Ohmek, a spiritual community rooted in deep listening and authentic presence. Yocheved talks about the challenges of ...

Rabbi Menachem Schmidt is a longtime Chabad Rabbi at the University of Pennsylvania and the founder of multiple initiatives like Jewish Heritage Programs, the Jewish Relief Agency, and the Old City Jewish Art Center—an innovative gallery in the heart of Philadelphia that brings Jewish art and expression into public conversation. In this episode he shares how he founded the gallery as a way to reach Jews who might not walk into a sy...

Elke Reva Sudin is a Brooklyn-based visual artist, entrepreneur, and cultural bridge-builder whose work spans fine art, live illustration, and fashion. In this dynamic conversation, Elke sits down with Yitzchok Moully to share the story behind her boundary-pushing projects—from her iconic Hipsters and Hassids series to launching the innovative Drawing Booth, and most recently, her fashion brand ELKE NYC, which debuted at New York F...

Mirele Rosenberger is a classically trained musician who has spent over four decades weaving music, motherhood, and spiritual growth into a rich creative life. After finding her way to the Chabad community in her early twenties, Mirele has quietly become a creative force—offering her talents as a performer, educator, and collaborator in spaces where religious observance and artistic expression often wrestle for room.

In this convers...

Menachem Weinreb is an award-winning illustrator and art director whose work lives at the intersection of design, storytelling, and Torah. In this episode, Menachem joins Yitzchok Moully for a deep dive into his creative journey—from his early fascination with drawing to leading the visual identity of Mishpacha Magazine and founding AmudArt, a studio that brings bold, contemporary illustration to timeless Torah themes.

But this conv...

Carol Man’s journey is anything but ordinary. Born and raised in Hong Kong, Carol discovered Judaism as an adult and eventually converted—an experience that deeply shaped both her identity and her art. In this episode, she joins Yitzchok Moully to share her path from a corporate life in Asia to becoming a visual artist living a Jewish life in Israel.

Carol’s artwork blends her Chinese heritage with her Jewish identity in powerful, v...

Anne Hromadka Greenwald is a curator, community builder, and champion of Jewish creativity. In this episode, recorded live at the Jewish Street Art Festival, Anne joins Yitzchok Moully for a thoughtful conversation about her work with the Jewish Community Foundation of Orange County and her passion for making Jewish art visible, accessible, and relevant.T

hey talk about what it means to support artists without having a traditional m...

Alejandro Glatt is a Mexican-Jewish artist whose vibrant and unexpected medium—fruit, especially the papaya—has become a powerful symbol of Jewish resilience and joy. But after living through October 7th in Tel Aviv, his art took on new urgency. In this episode, Alejandro speaks with Yitzchok Moully about the trauma, the fear, and the wave of antisemitism that followed—and how he chose to respond not with silence, but with more col...

Israel Portnoy is a musician whose work is rooted in emotion, honesty, and a search for meaning. In this episode, he joins Yitzchok Moully for a heartfelt conversation about growing up in a musical family, the quiet influence of Jewish identity, and how living in Israel has shaped his creative voice.

They explore the tension between authenticity and perfection, the spiritual depth that comes from making honest music, and what it mea...

Mike Wirth, muralist, designer, educator, and creative technologist, joins Orange Socks for a mind-bending conversation that bridges art, AI, and Jewish mysticism. From his early experiments with generative art in the 90s to his current work integrating artificial intelligence into creative practice, Mike offers a rare perspective on how new tools can shape how we imagine, make, and share. Along the way, he and Yitzchok dive deep i...

Jon Madof is a genre-bending guitarist, composer, and bandleader whose journey through music and Judaism is anything but typical. In this candid and thoughtful episode, Jon opens up about discovering music through American folk and classic rock, navigating the jazz and experimental scenes of New York, and finding his Jewish identity along the way. He shares how artists like John Zorn helped spark his connection to Jewish music, and...

Sruli Brooker is a musician and creative thinker who isn’t afraid to speak honestly about the ups and downs of the artistic journey. In this episode, he joins Yitzchok Moully for a wide-ranging conversation about identity, creative expression, and the struggle to show up authentically—especially as a Jewish artist.

They talk about the fear of calling yourself an artist, the post-October 7 shift in how art is being made and received,...

Chaim Aaron Green is a filmmaker navigating the challenges of staying true to his Jewish values while working in the film industry. In this episode, he shares his journey from working on major film productions in New York to stepping away from the industry, only to find his way back on his own terms.

Chaim and Yitzchok discuss the struggles of being a religious artist in a world that often clashes with Jewish life, the need for more...