Stylized text "ersatz" with a scribbled spiral above it, on a black background.

Replacement and simulation in the early 21st century

From the onset of World War I, German military replacement battalions became an active part of the conflict. Due to the intensity and gravity of the war, these substitute troops were urgently needed and stood in, massively, for the depleted forces and soldiers who were originally intended to fight.

As the war dragged on and Germany faced a blockade from 1914 to 1919, thousands of substitute products - from groceries to industrial tools - were developed and sold across Europe to face the growing scarcity of the wartime economy. 

Ersatz has since become a common name to describe these replacement goods - services, brands, experiences, and situations. The German word literally means substitute or replacement.

ERSATZ is a year-long art project that explores the creative potential of the ideas of replacement and simulation in contemporary societies. It challenges and interrogates the concept of authenticity in an age of endless mechanical and digital reproduction, biological simulation, and distributed identity formation.

  • Replacement

    How do demographic trends, synthetic environments, staged rituals, or retro-futurist nostalgia function as emotional or perceptual upgrades to what they displace?

  • Identity

    How does the rise of modular, performative, and algorithmically shaped identities complicate older narratives of authenticity and collective belonging?

  • Simulation

    What happens when a simulation becomes more stable, believable, or aesthetically satisfying than the system it imitates?

  • Technology

    In what ways do interface design, automation, and ambient AI create experiences that feel natural—and how does this engineered familiarity mask systemic forms of control?

  • Biology

    As biology becomes programmable—from gene editing to biofabrication—what new myths of are being constructed to legitimize the artificial?

  • Geopolitics

    What forms of sovereignty and post-nationhood are emerging through cloud infrastructure, algorithmic governance, and outsourced border control—and how are they reshaping the planetary map of power?

The word “ersatz” in large, red, serif font with a scribble above it on a black background. 
chumbo 2026 - 2027