Danielle “Dani” Kaes is a light artist and educator based in Seattle, Washington. She graduated with a BS in Biochemistry from the University of Puget sound in 2022. Starting as a traditional glassblower as part of the Hilltop Artist program in 2012, she transitioned into neon after apprenticing as a commercial neon bender in a prominent Seattle sign shop. She has continued to work in neon independently and commercially, using it as her main artistic medium, often citing its inherently temporary nature as its most valuable and interesting feature. Interested in the innate humor found in nihilism and the absurd, her work plays with scale, brash color choices, animation, and repeating simple shapes to explore the idea of what has the potential to become art rather than setting out to make art itself. She often describes her work as “nothing she would ever want in her house” because it is “big, bright, and always flashing”. As an artist, she has exhibited at various institutions including Pilchuck Glass and Museum of Glass. Kaes is passionate about maintaining open access to information, seeing it as necessary to continue the medium. As an educator, she demonstrated and instructed at various renowned institutions including Pilchuck Glass School, Museum of Neon Art, and with the Glass Art Society.
