A singular force in China’s contemporary art scene, Aniwar Mamat creates abstract paintings influenced by his earlier experiments in minimalism and figural representation, as well as by the history of Abstract Expressionism. As a young man in Western China, Aniwar was trained in Uighur carpetmaking, and his works recall felt or woven fabric. But within the abstractions are hints of desert landscapes, wind whipping through cityscapes, and the peaceful quiet of the inner world. To capture these small moments of sensation, he has developed new paints, including a water-soluble pigment that he uses in conjunction with environmental forces such as wind and rain. The result is paintings focused more on poetic and emotional response than the political statements so common in his peers.