Standing for You – Louise Fletcher – Ep 129

Louise Fletcher is an artist and teacher, gifted at helping her students connect with their emotions and unleash their artistic voice. But she wasn’t always aware of her gift.

She genuinely thought she had no artistic talent because she couldn’t sit in front of a canvas and execute a vision. When she learned that she could play with paint, and find joy in the process, it changed everything.

In this heartfelt conversation, we uncover the depths of finding one’s self-worth and embrace the concept that we must express every emotion in our art and life.

Listen if you are interested in…

• How I met Louise Fletcher [1:17]
• Discovering a love for painting [3:05]
• Finding purpose in painting [7:56]
• The art of finding your self-worth [13:57]
• Art mimics life and life mimics art [16:54]
• Standing for You: Expressing anger [26:16]
• How Louise helps students achieve authenticity [30:58]
• The process of the Creative Visionary Program [34:40]

Finding a purpose in painting

After she completed the Creative Visionary Program, Louise worked with a mindset coach who encouraged her to become a full-time artist. She struggled to see her coach’s vision. But one day, while walking her dog, the idea for an 8-week course struck her.

She went home and she created her course, “Find Your Joy.” She sold it at a low price to encourage people to take the course and it worked. People came pouring in.

She often wishes she’d discovered her passion for art at a younger age. But she’s learned there’s wisdom that comes with life experience that lends to teaching art that she wouldn’t otherwise have.

Art mimics life and life mimics art

When I ran competitively, I could never predict when I’d perform my best. That happens with art, too. It’s why I encourage people to just be in it. Wild and wonderful things happen when you don’t force yourself into a box. Louise always pushes to make her art better. She doesn’t end with something that’s “okay.” If you feel the urge to keep going, you must keep going.

Sometimes, you’ll have a part that you love, so you avoid trying to change it so you don’t mess it up. Isn’t that how life is? Maybe you’re in a relationship that you don’t want to mess up, so you paint around it because “everything else is fine.” You feel that you can preserve it if you don’t touch it.

When my marriage fell apart, I moved into an apartment that was close to my daughter’s high school. But that apartment made me feel small. I didn’t feel like I could move into a great place because of the pain I’d caused. That way of being became mirrored in other areas of my life.

I didn’t have self-worth. How could a good person cause so much pain? It undermined me and held me back. So I rented a houseboat, and surrounded myself by the things I loved, and it changed everything. As you do life, you do your art.

Standing for you

Growing up, Louise was taught that she had to place the feelings of men above her own. When she heard the song “Mad Woman” by Taylor Swift, it opened up something inside of her. The song expressed how an angry woman was labeled as “mad” or “crazy” instead of someone standing up for herself.

Wanting to express that feeling, Louise is now painting a series that she hopes will encapsulate that anger. She’s taking pinks and working to make them powerful. Because no one should ever feel that they have to suppress their feelings. Why not reflect that in art?

Resources & People Mentioned

• Taylor Swift’s “Mad Woman”
• Esalen
• Georgina Noel

Connect with Louise Fletcher

• Louise Fletcher Art
• Follow on Instagram
• Art Juice Podcast

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