“I was doing these abstract sculptures and that led me to building my first puppet and putting clothes on it and moving it around,” Pipkins said.” So I tripped and fell into puppetry.

Pipkins, also known by his artist name Jeghetto, referenced his love of horror and science fiction films such as “Gremlins” and “Predator” as his introduction to puppetry. With that context in mind, the conversation shifted towards the panels’ journey to becoming puppeteers and actors, with many citing the ways pop culture led them to appreciating the art of puppetry. The area of Egypt is believed to be where puppets originated from.” I believe it was as early as 1829 was the first documented puppetry and we know there was probably puppetry long before that because puppetry was huge, and storytelling was a big part of the oral tradition of Africa. “Many people may not know that there was puppetry in Africa long before the European colonization,” Harrison said. The discussion kicked off with Harrison framing the conversation with the long tradition of African puppetry. Renee Clark, Chris Thomas Hayes, Tarish Pipkins, Spencer Stephens and Paulette Richards. The all-star panel, hosted by Brian Harrison of the Center for Puppetry Arts, featured S. While Henson has traditionally served as the face of modern puppetry arts, Atlanta’s Center for Puppetry Arts shone the spotlight on the history of Black and African puppetry during a conversation with notable Black theater artists on Feb.

For many, the world of puppetry arts has become synonymous with Jim Henson, the puppeteer responsible for creating and voicing Kermit the Frog.

Center for puppetry