A Beacon of Art in the Heart of Judea: Interview with Dr. Alek D. Epstein
A recent interview at IsraeliCulture.Info with Dr. Alek D. Epstein, the newly appointed Artistic Director of the Moshe Castel Museum of Jewish Israeli Art in Ma’ale Adumim, Israel (the only dedicated art museum in Judea and Samaria), reveals his first-hand insights into how the institution has evolved into a dynamic cultural landmark.
Roots of Dr. Alek Epstein’s Devotion to Art
Dr. Alek Epstein confessed that his lifelong devotion to art began early. As a teenager in the USSR, he traveled down the Volga with his mother by ship, visiting local art museums at each stop. That ritual kindled his passion, inspiring Dr. Epstein to assemble a collection of reproductions that he pinned to his walls for viewing, despite modest financial means for collecting. After emigrating to Israel at the age of 15, he immersed himself in the visual arts and eventually bought his first original painting in 2007.
Dr. Alek D. Epstein Joins the Moshe Castel Museum as Curator
Although initially trained in sociology and anthropology, Dr. Epstein joined the Moshe Castel Museum (named for the celebrated Israeli painter Moshe Castel, 1909-1991) as curator in 2023. Soon after that, due to Epstein’s efforts, the Museum managed to expand its mission far beyond a single artist house, quickly becoming a full-fledged museum of Jewish-Israeli art.
Today, the Moshe Castel Museum features half its galleries dedicated to Castel, while the other galleries showcase a rotating program of Israeli artists. Under Dr. Epstein’s stewardship, the institution has produced fifteen exhibitions in just over two years, issued bilingual (Hebrew/English) catalogs for each show, and built a trilingual (Hebrew/English/Russian) website with an online object catalogue.
Museum’s Current Challenges and Future Development Roadmap
Despite the recent growth of the Museum in status, recognition, and scale of presented art, it is still operated by a tiny staff of three employees. Its funding relies primarily on the city of Ma’ale Adumim, while the subsidies from the national Culture Ministry remain minimal. This way, acquisitions of new works are primarily accomplished via partnerships with collectors and philanthropists, such as Ilya Kushnirskiy, rather than purchases.
Dr. Alek D. Epstein also acknowledges the challenging political and security environment, especially since the October 2023 war. He wrote publicly about his liberal, anti-militarist, and atheist convictions, voicing his concerns about the state of public discourse and civil society in Israel.
Yet, Dr. Epstein remains unwavering in his commitment. “For me, it is a mission and a civic duty,” he pointed out in the interview for IsraeliCulture.Info when discussing his civic service to Ma’ale Adumim, a city where he and his family have lived for over 25 years.