Roham Shamekh Reimagines Ritual: Earth Magma Debuts at Los Angeles’ SMOKESHOW Exhibition
Dubai-based artist and designer Roham Shamekh brings an elemental force to the West Coast art scene with the debut of Earth Magma, a limited-edition collection of sculptural ashtrays unveiled as part of SMOKESHOW, a summer group exhibition curated by So-Too, open from July 10 in Los Angeles.
Bold, alchemical, and spiritually charged, Earth Magma transforms a utilitarian form—the ashtray—into a ceremonial artefact. Shamekh’s bronze-cast sculptures are embedded with four stones, each symbolizing one of the cardinal elements: earth, air, fire, and water. As functional objects, they acknowledge the cultural rituals surrounding smoking. As artworks, they challenge us to contemplate the deeper emotional and energetic rhythms that connect us to the natural world.
Art Meets Elemental Energy
Shamekh is a rising figure among a new generation of cross-disciplinary creatives redefining the boundaries between art, design, and ritual. With a practice rooted in Dubai but globally resonant, his work frequently explores the intersection of material and meaning, pushing objects beyond utility into the poetic realm.
In Earth Magma, Shamekh proposes a symbolic yet striking inquiry: Could the Earth’s electromagnetic frequencies be in resonance with the human heart? This metaphysical reflection doesn’t demand scientific proof—it offers a meditative lens through which to experience the work. By situating the ashtray within this speculative field, he reframes it as a vessel of transformation rather than a disposable utility.
Sculptural Ceremonies
Each ashtray in the collection is forged from bronze, a material historically linked to both ritual use and permanence. The embedded stones aren’t mere decoration—they function as markers of elemental presence, grounding each piece in a symbolic cosmology. Their inclusion turns every object into a small altar, honoring the physical and metaphysical forces that shape both Earth and human experience.
The result is a series of works that feel both ancient and futuristic, sacred and subversive. They speak to ceremony, ritual, transformation, and our shifting relationship with objects once dismissed as mundane.
SMOKESHOW: A Recontextualized Collective
Shamekh’s Earth Magma collection takes its place among 30 contemporary artists participating in SMOKESHOW, a dynamic group exhibition that reimagines the ashtray as an object of artistic exploration. Curated by So-Too, the exhibition interrogates the cultural, symbolic, and sculptural potential of the ashtray—a once-ubiquitous item now laden with historical and social significance.
In this context, Earth Magma feels both reverent and radical. It’s not just a nod to the past or a provocation—it’s a call to reconsider the objects around us, to reframe how we imbue them with meaning, and how art can elevate even the most overlooked forms into powerful symbols.
A Contemplative Offering
In Earth Magma, Shamekh invites us to pause, reflect, and reconsider the energy of objects. These aren’t just ashtrays—they’re sculptural meditations on the interconnectedness of life, nature, ritual, and human consciousness.
As Los Angeles welcomes this elemental body of work, Shamekh continues to expand his dialogue between material and spirit—charting new territory at the ever-shifting intersection of art and design.
Portrait by Nikita Berenzhoy
Exhibition Info
SMOKESHOW
Curated by So-Too
Opening July 10, 2025
Location: Los Angeles, CA
Featuring 30 Contemporary Artists, including Roham Shamekh
