Artist brings mural to Jersey City to celebrate Hanukkah, honor shooting victims

An interactive art project is honoring the victims of the Dec. 10 shooting at a Jersey City kosher grocery store.

News 12 Staff

Dec 25, 2019, 2:52 AM

Updated 1,591 days ago

Share:

An interactive art project is honoring the victims of the Dec. 10 shooting at a Jersey City kosher grocery store.
Keren Vered added the third flame to the menorah on the mural, partly to celebrate the third night of Hanukkah. Vered is one of several local artists invited to paint a large flame on the mural – one for each night of the holiday.
"What an impressive piece of work right now to have going,” says Vered. “The fact that I could be a small part of it is an honor."
Other people are invited to add their own positive messages to the wall by using brightly-colored markers – a symbol of light on the dark backdrop. Artist Rabbi Yitzchok Moully painted the menorah and says that the project has received a tremendous response.
"I believe in humanity, I believe in the greater good of all of us have…I mean, United We Stand,” Moully says. "The attorney general came and he wrote a message right over here, ‘Love is greater than hate.’”
Moully established his #LightOverDarkness project in 2018 after a shooting at a Pittsburgh synagogue, creating a mobile menorah mural. Through a partnership with Green Villain and Chabad Young Professionals of Hoboken and Jersey City, he was able to bring the project to Jersey City. The mural, located at the southwestern corner of Buy Rite Liquors in Jersey City, is highly visible to the thousands of drivers using the Holland Tunnel each day.
“It’s the nicest panel on the entire site, so it’s perfect,” says Green Villain founder Gregory Edgell.
Moully says that there is an idea in Judaism that light is greater after the darkness.
"The idea of light from darkness and that's the idea of Hanukkah, that we start off with no flame and then every night we light one more flame, adding more light,” he says.
Moully says that even after all eight lights have been painted on the mural and Hanukkah is over, people are still encouraged to stop by, grab a marker and write their messages of positivity on the wall. He says the idea is to put so many messages of light that the dark background of the mural gets completely covered up.
Three people were shot and killed inside the JC Kosher grocery store on Dec. 10 in what authorities are saying was a targeted attack. Jersey City Police Detective Joseph Seal was killed by the gunmen in a confrontation prior to the attack. The gunmen were killed after a standoff with police.
 


More from News 12
1:42
3 pedestrians, including 2 children, struck by NYC-based news van in Elizabeth

3 pedestrians, including 2 children, struck by NYC-based news van in Elizabeth

2:17
Cooler temps today in the 60s for New Jersey ahead of some wet weather this weekend

Cooler temps today in the 60s for New Jersey ahead of some wet weather this weekend

1:31
Fire chief: 20 people displaced in Elizabeth fire that damaged multiple businesses, apartments

Fire chief: 20 people displaced in Elizabeth fire that damaged multiple businesses, apartments

0:41
Aftermath of deadly house explosion in South River shows home blown into pieces

Aftermath of deadly house explosion in South River shows home blown into pieces

0:28
GoFundMe started for 6-month-old boy and his grandfather killed by fallen tree in Verona

GoFundMe started for 6-month-old boy and his grandfather killed by fallen tree in Verona

0:40
Main Street New Jersey: Restaurants, businesses to visit in Edgewater

Main Street New Jersey: Restaurants, businesses to visit in Edgewater

0:18
South Brunswick police searching for missing man last seen on Route 1

South Brunswick police searching for missing man last seen on Route 1

0:38
Knicks advance to the Eastern Conference semis, topping 76ers 118-115 in Game 6

Knicks advance to the Eastern Conference semis, topping 76ers 118-115 in Game 6

1:12
Several house fires break out Thursday in New Jersey; 1 man dead

Several house fires break out Thursday in New Jersey; 1 man dead

0:23
South Orange woman indicted for stealing over $1 million federal benefits intended for dead aunt

South Orange woman indicted for stealing over $1 million federal benefits intended for dead aunt

2:10
Paws & Pals: Lilypad now up for adoption with AHS Newark

Paws & Pals: Lilypad now up for adoption with AHS Newark

0:33
Experts fear 'catastrophic' college declines thanks to botched FAFSA rollout

Experts fear 'catastrophic' college declines thanks to botched FAFSA rollout

WATCH LIVE: Bridge over section of I-95 is being demolished due to damage from truck fire

WATCH LIVE: Bridge over section of I-95 is being demolished due to damage from truck fire

10 organizations to donate to in support of the Asian American and Pacific Islander communities

10 organizations to donate to in support of the Asian American and Pacific Islander communities

1:26
Look up! Annual Eta Aquarid meteor shower peaks early Sunday morning

Look up! Annual Eta Aquarid meteor shower peaks early Sunday morning

1:20
Pro-Palestinian protest that postponed final exams at Rutgers ends peacefully

Pro-Palestinian protest that postponed final exams at Rutgers ends peacefully

0:36
Jersey Proud: Police officers gather for town cleanup in memory of fallen officer

Jersey Proud: Police officers gather for town cleanup in memory of fallen officer

2:17
Bound Brook starts Lithium Ion Identification Program to help firefighters identify risks

Bound Brook starts Lithium Ion Identification Program to help firefighters identify risks

0:57
Funeral services held in Newark for Rep. Donald Payne, Jr.

Funeral services held in Newark for Rep. Donald Payne, Jr.

0:22
Prosecutor: 61-year-old man dies in Jersey City high-rise fire

Prosecutor: 61-year-old man dies in Jersey City high-rise fire