Brant Bollman

Uplifting Puppet Co.

William Penn University, Oskaloosa, IA

Artist, activist, actor, puppet-maker, Brant Bollman helms Uplifting Puppet Co. out of Oskaloosa, Iowa.  He builds and performs giant street puppets (that he calls ‘Uppets’) for parades, marches and rallies on a variety of social topics. He aims to tap into the primordial myth-making role of the shaman summoning masked dancers about the campfire. 

“I see myself as a creator of experiences, a wizard of papier-mâché, cardboard, and wire,” explains Bollman. “I make magical moments. I am like the ringmaster at a circus leading the grand parade.”

More down to earth are his smaller stick puppets.  He creates a cast of characters inspired by 80’s Pop Artist Keith Haring, 16-bit video games, and childhood cartoons. He paints whimsical acrylic paintings that he calls, ‘portraits of puppets I haven’t made yet.’  Curious kitties, dancing robots, awkward storks, and playful puppies all take the stage. They hang perfectly in the room of a child (or a child at heart). He also casts these characters in linoleum print posters advocating for an array of social  topics; from climate change to tolerance, stopping food waste to economic reform.

 Uplifting Puppet Co.’s ultimate goal is to fight injustice with papier-mâché.

He also is the Director of Theatre Arts at William Penn University in Oskaloosa, Iowa where he teaches studio art, directs plays and creates giant lighted puppets for the town’s annual holiday spectacular The Oskaloosa Lighthed Christmas Parade.