Paola Jara

What does daylight mean to you?

Daylight is life. It is essential for our health, biological functions and phycological feelings. Hence, a space designed for people should enhance this natural human necessity.  

How did your interest in the subject rise?

My interest arose when I was an architecture student. In my first two years, in the workshop unit, I was taught to use an analogue sun-path. With it, we had to perform several architectural daylight exercises. Between them, through paper folds, each student had to design an illuminated place on her or his birthday. Since then, shape and daylight have been on my mind.

How do you work with daylight in your research?

Until now, in my research projects, I have explored daylight in two ways. The first of them, it is through the design of a daylight device. In this topic, I have proposed and evaluated an alternative prototype of laser cut panel for scattering of sunlight at high latitudes. The second and more recent topic that I am starting to explore, it is daylight and vernacular architecture in my country (Chile).