In this work, Margolles creates a tension between beauty and death. The traditional Mayan embroidery was stitched by women activists on fabric carrying the stains from the body of a woman murdered in Guatemala City. The marks on the cloth are the visceral reminders of a life lost through violence. They call attention to the victims of systemic violence in Guatemala, stemming from poverty, drug-related crime, political crisis, military assaults on communities and domestic violence. The embroidery represents the ongoing presence of these Mayan women, while at the same time the stains are evidence of their disappearance.