aggie Taylor began to photograph in 1981 while she was a student at Yale University majoring in philosophy. She primarily took photographs of suburban landscapes and strange objects found in yards. In 1985 she enrolled in graduate school at the University of Florida where she encountered a much broader acceptance of manipulated and fabricated photography, both among teachers and fellow students.   "I became increasingly interested in inventing my own world in front of the camera, using old snapshots, objects and bits of text to create three-dimensional collages which I photographed. Since 1986 I have been working exclusively on these still-life arrangements, which I currently set up in my yard and photograph using the available light. These images were all made with an old 4x5 Crown Graphic camera on color negative film.   "In my studio I have drawers, tables and shelves filled with all kinds of objects and pieces of text. Usually I have sorted and arranged a few things indoors before taking them outside into the yard. Once outdoors I begin to work spontaneously, often incorporating things which I find in my garden on the particular day. Creating this work is a learning experience in which I begin with few preconceived notions about the look of the finished photograph. Rather than working with a definite theme or philosophical construct in mind, I prefer to work intuitively with the objects themselves. While the images suggest narratives, they allow the viewer to respond on an individual basis. I wish the viewer to experience a convergence of factual memory and fictional daydream similar to my own internal dialogue in creating the work. In other words, I leave the interpretation of the photographs up to the viewer. These images are my attempt to unravel the ways in which my thoughts, memories and dreams intermingle. My hope is for the work to be both playful and disturbing.   --- Maggie Taylor