In 2010, Ma Hailun, then an 18-year-old middle school student, left Urumqi in the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region to study in New York City.

Among her belongings was a handmade wool carpet measuring 1.2 meters in length and 80 centimeters in width, an item that reminded her of home, sweet home.

The piece was made from high-quality, durable wool, with intricate traditional patterns in a rich array of colors centered on shades of red. It was from her bedroom in Urumqi.

Xinjiang is one of the world's centers of carpet weaving, with archaeological findings tracing the art in the region back over 2,000 years.

"I feel that the carpet is an extension of Xinjiang," Ma says.

Following completion of her postgraduate studies in fashion photography at the School of Visual Arts, she returned to China and settled in Shanghai in 2018, where the red carpet still has a place in her studio.

Now as a photographer, who frequently focuses her lens on her hometown and its people, handmade carpets have become a recurring element in her work.

"Carpets give me a sense of being grounded. They bear the weight of life, much like a soft patch of land," she says.

"Growing up in Xinjiang, carpets are an integral part of my life, as familiar to me as any other piece of furniture."