Brooklyn, NY
contact@dereklarson.net
https://tresmall.com/
Animator, researcher, and educator working at the intersection of animation,
media theory, and digital production.
Education
Master’s, Yale University
Bachelor’s, Indiana University
Exhibitions / Screenings (solo**)
2026
Upcoming Très Mall Episode 9 “So Dead & Gagged: Executive Power, Modern U.S. Aggression, and the Slave South’s Constitutional Legacy” : Featuring Bruce Ackerman (Yale Law), Lawrence Lessig (Harvard Law), Nancy Fraser (The New School), Sanford Levinson (Univ. Texas Law), Dov Cohen (Univ. Illinois Psychology), Marina Garcés (Univ. Oberta de Catalunya), Tom Ginsburg (Univ. of Chicago Law). Music by Jim O’Rourke, The Halo Benders, Marmoset, Minami Deutsch & Jorma Whittaker on DIS**
Très Mall Episode 8 “Corporate Chains: The Electoral College & the South” : Featuring Darrell M. West (Brookings Institute) & Osita Nwanevu. Music by Jim O’Rourke & Jorma Whittaker on DIS**
Très Mall (Episodes 1-8), curated by Rachel Waldrop, Lamar Dodd School of Art, University of Georgia, Athens GA **
Made in Mexico: The Anti Communist Cartoons of Dibujos Animados S.A., curated by Rachel Waldrop, Lamar Dodd School of Art, University of Georgia, Athens GA **
“Modernism for Export: Cold War Cartoons Made in Mexico,” Derek G. Larson (FDU) with David Joselit (Harvard) and McKenzie Wark (The New School), Anthology Film Archives, New York, NY**
2025
Larson, D. G., Davies, B., Oliva Mendoza, C. (2025). Made in Mexico: The Anti-Communist Cartoons of Dibujos Animados S.A. Journal of Latin American Cultural Studies, Cambridge University Press 34(2), 275-293. https://doi.org/10.1080/13569325.2025.2492130
Très Mall Episodes 5 & 7, PAF Olomouc Festival of Film Animation and Contemporary Art, Czech Republic
2024
Très Mall Episode 7 “Art’s Properties” : Featuring Boris Groys (NYU), David Joselit (Harvard), Jim Jinkins (“Doug”), Carlos Oliva Mendoza (UNAM). Music by Jim O’Rourke on DIS**
2023
"Mexican Animation, American Propaganda, and the Cold War - A Showcase of Cartoons from Dibujos Animados S.A. (1952-56)," Derek G. Larson (Purdue), Byron Davies, Carlos Oliva Mendoza (UNAM), Dan Bashara (DePaul), Block Museum of Art, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL
"Paintures" Group Show, ADA Gallery, Richmond VA
HOMAGE, Fred., Brooklyn NY, a benefit for Smack Mellon, curated by Derek G. Larson and Jeff Wallace.
Soundxploit.sh: Très Mall, Gonima, Parts Project and Rony, Casa Del Popolo La Sotterenea, Feb 9th, 2023, Montreal CA **
2022
Très Mall Episode 6 “Interview with Noam Chomsky” on DIS**
MdW Assembly, Mana Contemporary, Chicago IL **
La Cueva, Screening & Presentation, Mexico City MX **
2021
In Good Company, Mana Contemporary, Chicago IL
If You Lived Here You'd Be Home By Now, Wassaic Project NY
Très Mall Episode 5 “The Violence Entrepreneurs” on DIS**
2020
What Do People Do All Day?, Kunsthal Charlottenborg, Copenhagen Denmark
contemporaryartdaily.com/2020/08/group-show-at-kunsthal-charlottenborg/
Artforum, Kunsthal Charlottenborg DIS presents: What Do People Do All Day?
Garden Pleasure, Yale School of Architecture, New Haven CT **
What Do People Do All Day?, Tranen, Copenhagen Denmark
The Eye Can See Things The Arm Cannot Reach, Sajetta, Polignano A Mare Italy
Selected Speaking
Yale, RISD, Parsons, SAIC, MIT Museum, U. Georgia, Anthology Film Archives
Collections
The New Orleans Museum of Art | Hull McKnight Georgia Cyber Center | The Jepson Center Telfair Museum | private collections in Los Angeles, New Haven, New Orleans, New York, Seattle, St. Louis, Tacoma, Atlanta, Detroit, Vienna Austria, Liverpool & Nottingham UK.
Grants
National Endowment for the Arts | Ellen Battell Stoeckel Fellowship, Yale School of Art | Margie E. West Fund, University of Georgia | Helen Frankenthaler Fellowship, Vermont Studio Center | David Bermant Foundation Fellowship in Kinetic Art, Vermont Studio Center | Yale School of Art Fellowship & Research Grant | University of Hawaii | SECAC Award in Research | Hudgens Prize Finalist | Working Artist Grant & Purchase Award | Tethervision Video Grant, Nottingham UK | Summer Research Grant, Yale School of Art
Residencies
Jack Straw Cultural Center Seattle WA | Untitled Shanghai, Residency at the Studios at MASS MoCA | Swatch Art Peace Hotel Shanghai | Arteles Finland | CCI Fabrika Moscow |Vermont Studio Center.
Press
"Mexican Animation & American Propaganda: The Block hosts first US screening of lost Cold War cartoons," Block Museum of Art, Northwestern University. (December 6, 2023).
"Mexican Animation, American Propaganda, and the Cold War (1952-56) @ Block Museum of Art, Northwestern University," The Visualist. (November 2, 2023).
"Mexican Animation, Propaganda and the Cold War at the CCD," Marvin. (April 29, 2023).
"Vacation at War: In Conversation with Derek Larson," Burnaway. (September 7, 2021).
Refereed Journal Articles
Larson, D. G., Davies, B., Oliva Mendoza, C. (2025). Made in Mexico: The Anti-Communist Cartoons of Dibujos Animados S.A. Journal of Latin American Cultural Studies, Cambridge University Press 34(2), 275-293. https://doi.org/10.1080/13569325.2025.2492130
Book Chapters
Larson, D. G. (2023). Does the Voice Reveal More Emotion than the Face? A Study with Animated Agents. Lecture Notes in Computer Science ((LNCS,volume 14047)) (vol. LNCS,volume 14047, pp. 229–242). Springer. https://par.nsf.gov/servlets/purl/10474999
Larson, D. G. (2023). Fiat Lux! Does the Lighting Design Affect Viewers’ Perception of an Animated Character Personality? Lecture Notes in Computer Science ((LNCS,volume 14047)) (Lecture Notes in Computer Science ((LNCS,volume 14047)) ed., vol. LNCS,volume 14047, pp. 263–272). Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-35979-8_21
Presentations
2026
Larson, D. G. (Lecture) “Modernism for Export: Cold War Cartoons Made in Mexico,” Derek G. Larson (FDU) with David Joselit (Harvard) and McKenzie Wark (The New School), curated by Jed Rapfogel, Anthology Film Archives, New York, NY
2024
Larson, D. G. (Lecture), XXI Congreso Internacional de Filosofía, "Animation & Capitalism," La Asociación Filosófica de México, Universidad de Guanajuato, Guanajuato, Mexico. (March 2024).
Larson, D. G. (Lecture), "Cartoon Capitalism, Propaganda & American Individualism: US Cold War Animations Made in Mexico," University of Washington, Seattle. (February 2024).
2023
Larson, D. G. (Lecture), "Mexican Animation, American Propaganda, and the Cold War - A Showcase of Cartoons from Dibujos Animados S.A. (1952-56),"Northwestern University, Block Museum of Art, Chicago, IL, United States. (November 2, 2023).
Larson, D. G. (Lecture), "Presenting: Mexican Animation, Propaganda, and the Cold War - A Showcase of Cartoons from Dibujos Animados S.A. (1952-56)," Centro de Cultura Digital, Mexico City, Mexico (May 2023).
Larson, D. G. (Lecture), "Animación Mexicana, Propaganda Y Guerra Fría - Caricaturas de Propaganda Anticomunista Producidas en México con el Apoyo Secreto de EE.UU. en los 50," Archivo General del Estado de Oaxaca, Mexico. (April 29, 2023).
Larson, D. G. (Moderator), "Future Space, Trade and Capitalism in Digital Cities," panel with McKenzie Wark (New School), Michael Hardt (Duke), and Carlos Oliva Mendoza (UNAM), moderated by Derek G. Larson (Purdue), CAA College Art Association, New York, NY, United States. (February 16, 2023).
2022
Larson, D. G. (Moderator), Society for Literature, Science, and the Arts (SLSA), "Creative Imaging in A Generative Simulation," Society for Literature, Science, and the Arts (SLSA), Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, United States. (2022).
Larson, D. G. (Visiting Artist), "Très Mall," Indiana University, Eskenazi School of Art, Architecture + Design, Bloomington, IN, United States. (2022).
Larson, D. G. (Moderator), Future Bodies Symposium, "Accessibility + Design,”Future Bodies Symposium with Kel Smith, A.P. Vague, Jing Zhou, David Adelman, xtine burrough, moderated by Derek G. Larson," New Media Caucus, Virginia Tech University, Blacksburg, VA, United States. (September 30, 2022).
Larson, D. G. (Lecture), Animafest Scaner IX, "Rocky and Bullwinkle and Propaganda - Derek G. Larson (Purdue)," Animafest, Zagreb, Croatia. (June 6, 2022).
Larson, D. G. (Lecture), "Très Mall: Philosophy, Capitalism and Violence," Rising of Lusitania AnimaDoc Film Festival, Wrzesnia, Poland. (May 2022).
Technical Tools
Adobe Creative Suite, Toon Boom Harmony, Blender, Maya, Unreal Engine, Unity, Houdini, Qualtrics, Claude, ChatGPT, Prompt Engineering, AI-assisted Production, Learning Management Systems
