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COURIER L 10 IFE, JULY 10-16, 2020
Jane Walentas, the
artist behind Dumbo’s
historic carousel, dies
BY ROSE ADAMS
Jane Walentas, an artist, philanthropist,
and Dumbo pioneer who restored
Brooklyn Bridge Park’s historic
carousel, died on July 5. She was
76 years old.
Walentas, an accomplished artist
and creative director, played a critical
role in nurturing Dumbo’s artistic renaissance
for more than 30 years. She
sponsored local artists, brought arts
programs to the Brooklyn neighborhood,
and dedicated her life’s work to
restoring the 1922 carousel in Brooklyn
Bridge Park that’s named in her honor.
Walentas was born Jane Leslie Zimmerman
in Teaneck, New Jersey in
1944. She graduated from Moore College
of Art & Design in Philadelphia
in 1966, and began working at Estée
Lauder four years later, where she
served as a creative director until 1983.
She received a master’s degree in printmaking
from New York University one
year later.
In 1973, Jane married David Walentas
— the founder of the real estate development
fi rm Two Trees Management
who purchased most of Dumbo for $12
million in the 1980s. The deal was made
possible by Jane’s close connection to
Ronald and Leonard Lauder, the heirs to
the Estée Lauder brand, who loaned the
Walentas $6 million for the purchase.
Jane spent the following decades fostering
the neighborhood’s artistic community.
In 2008, she worked with artist
Chuck Close to bring a program that
provides artists with free studio space to
Dumbo, and she frequently offered discounted
or free studio space to artists in
Two Trees’ properties.
Her most famous achievement, however,
was her purchase and restoration
of Jane’s Carousel — a 98-year-old carnival
ride she spent nearly three decades
revitalizing.
The project began in 1983, when her
husband — who was selected to develop
Jane Walentas, an artist and Dumbo pioneer
behind Brooklyn Bridge Park’s historic carousel,
died on July 5.
Courtesy of the Walentas family
what is now Brooklyn Bridge Park —
hired waterfront architect Ben Thompson
to design the greenspace. The masterplan
called for the installation of a
historic carousel, a mission Jane made
her own.
After a year-long search, Jane found
a 19th century carousel in Youngstown,
Ohio that was going to be sold piecemeal,
and purchased it for $385,000. She spent
the next 27 years scraping away layers
of paint with an X-Acto knife to uncover
the carousel’s original color palette,
and restored its 48 exquisitely-painted
horses to their former glory. After the
carousel’s completion in 2011, Jane
founded the Friends of Jane’s Carousel
to manage its operation, and served as
the group’s executive director until her
death.
Jane is survived by her husband; her
son, Jed Walentas; her stepson, Christopher
Walentas; and two grandchildren.
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