At first glance, Maria looks like an athlete resting after a warm-up. It's all in the way her limbs are arranged, and her bandaged right leg initially makes you think of a sports injury of some kind. The photograph's lighting is also reminiscent of one of those old-school shots of celebrated boxers, meant to celebrate both their battered bodies and their unsettling grace in equal measure.
At second glance, the reality of Maria’s life begins to set in. It starts with the hideous purple track marks blooming on her left leg. Then you move on to the rest of her body – most of her flesh looks undead. You finally bring yourself to look at her face. It is the face of a young hag, a woman who might have been pretty once, before fate had other ideas.
