7 Artists: Who Can Help You Break Limiting Beliefs
Because sometimes the boldest breakthroughs come from those who turned pain into power, and chaos into clarity.
"There is a crack in everything. That's how the light gets in."
— Leonard Cohen
Limiting beliefs rarely scream. They whisper.
“You’re not ready.”
“You’re too much.”
“You don’t belong.”
They show up in self-doubt, perfectionism, fear of failure—and they quietly shape the way you lead, create, and show up in the world.
But what if art could help break them?
The seven artists below didn’t just make beautiful things. They challenged assumptions, defied inner critics, and turned vulnerability into power. Each one offers a lesson in transforming belief into breakthrough.
Table of Content
Frida Kahlo: The Power of Brokenness
René Magritte: Unthinking the Obvious
Louise Bourgeois: Emotions Are Serious Work
Marina Abramović: The Discipline of Vulnerability
Yayoi Kusama: Owning the Mind
Jean-Michel Basquiat: No Permission Needed
Tracey Emin: The Courage to Be Raw
Why This Matters in Agile Work Life
References
🎨 1. Frida Kahlo – The Power of Brokenness
Limiting belief: “If I’m broken, I’m unworthy.”
🖼 The Broken Column (1944) shows Kahlo’s post-surgery body—cracked, pierced with nails, yet proudly upright.
“I never paint dreams or nightmares. I paint my own reality.” — Frida Kahlo
https://www.fridakahlo.org/the-broken-column.jsp
Kahlo teaches that healing doesn’t come from hiding pain—it comes from honoring it. Your wounds can be your strength. The parts you hide may be the ones most worth showing.
🪞Reflection:
What pain are you currently trying to hide—because it feels like a weakness?
What would happen if you honored it instead of fixing it?
🧠 2. René Magritte – Unthinking the Obvious
Limiting belief: “I need to follow the rules.”
🖼 The Treachery of Images (1929) features the famous line: “This is not a pipe.”
“If I had written on my picture ‘This is a pipe,’ I’d have been lying.” — Magritte
https://www.renemagritte.org/the-treachery-of-images.jsp
Magritte reminds us: the map is not the territory. The label is not the truth. Creativity begins where certainty ends. Challenge the assumptions you’ve accepted as truth.
🪞Reflection:
Where in your life are you living by “rules” you never agreed to?
What would happen if you rewrote just one of them?
💔 3. Louise Bourgeois – Emotions Are Serious Work
Limiting belief: “Emotions don’t belong in professional life.”
🖼 Maman (1999), a towering spider of steel, embodies both fear and fierce protection.
“Art is a guarantee of sanity.” — Louise Bourgeois
https://www.tate.org.uk/visit/tate-modern/display/louise-bourgeois
Emotions are not distractions. They are data. They reveal what matters, what’s been lost, and what needs to change. Allowing them in can be the most courageous act of leadership.
🪞Reflection:
What emotion have you been pushing down in order to appear “professional”?
How might naming it make you stronger, not weaker?
👁️ 4. Marina Abramović – The Discipline of Vulnerability
Limiting belief: “Vulnerability makes me weak.”
🖼 The Artist Is Present (2010): Abramović sat silently for 700+ hours, eyes locked with strangers.
“Nothing happens if you always do things the same way.” — Marina Abramović
https://www.moma.org/calendar/exhibitions/964
She proved presence can be more powerful than performance. Being seen—without doing anything—is radical. It’s not weakness. It’s human strength in its rawest form.
🪞Reflection:
Where are you still performing, even when it’s costing you connection?
What would it feel like to just… be there?
🌌 5. Yayoi Kusama – Owning the Mind
Limiting belief: “I’m too strange to belong.”
🖼 Infinity Mirror Rooms immerse visitors in Kusama’s hallucinations—turning obsession into wonder.
“If it were not for art, I would have killed myself a long time ago.” — Yayoi Kusama
https://hirshhorn.si.edu/kusama/infinity-rooms/
Kusama transforms her inner world into vibrant truth. Her brilliance lies in what others once called broken. Your uniqueness is not a flaw—it’s your fingerprint of impact.
🪞Reflection:
What part of you feels “too different” to be accepted?
What if that’s the exact part the world most needs to see?
🚫 6. Jean-Michel Basquiat – No Permission Needed
Limiting belief: “I need to be validated first.”
🖼 Untitled (1981) and SAMO© graffiti launched Basquiat from the streets to galleries.
“I am not a Black artist, I am an artist.” — Jean-Michel Basquiat
https://www.thebroad.org/art/jean-michel-basquiat/untitled
He didn’t wait for permission. He created in defiance of gatekeepers. The lesson: stop asking. Start making. The only permission you need is your own conviction.
🪞Reflection:
What are you postponing until you get more experience, more approval, more… something?
What would you create if no one had to say yes?
🛏️ 7. Tracey Emin – The Courage to Be Raw
Limiting belief: “I must be polished to be accepted.”
🖼 My Bed (1998): Her unmade bed—blood-stained sheets, cigarettes, and heartbreak—on display.
“There should be something revelatory about art... something desperate and urgent.” — Tracey Emin
https://www.tate.org.uk/art/artworks/emin-my-bed-l03662
Emin made healing visible. She reminds us: you don’t have to be ‘ready’ to be real. Showing your truth—messy, human, unfiltered—might be the bravest act of all.
🪞Reflection:
What part of your story feels “too messy” to share?
What if someone else is waiting to feel less alone by hearing it?
✨ Final Reflection
Art cracks open what language can’t.
It shows what’s possible when you stop trying to be perfect—and start being true.
If you're stuck in fear, playing small, or feeling like you’re not enough—these artists offer an invitation: break the belief. Create anyway. Lead anyway. Heal anyway.
Let the crack be where the light gets in.
With care and curiosity,
Andreas
👉 This post is part of our ongoing focus theme on limiting beliefs—and how they shape the way we lead, work, and grow.
References & Artwork Credits
1. Frida Kahlo – The Broken Column (1944)
Museo Dolores Olmedo, Mexico City
🔗 FridaKahlo.org – The Broken Column
🔗 PBS: Frida Kahlo’s Life and Locations
2. René Magritte – The Treachery of Images (1929)
Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA)
🔗 LACMA Collection – The Treachery of Images
🔗 Encyclopedia Britannica – Magritte's Pipe
3. Louise Bourgeois – Maman (1999)
Displayed at Tate Modern, Guggenheim, and others
🔗 Tate Modern – Louise Bourgeois
🔗 Wikipedia – Maman (Sculpture)
4. Marina Abramović – The Artist Is Present (2010)
Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), New York
🔗 MoMA – The Artist Is Present
🔗 MoMA Audio – Marina Abramović
5. Yayoi Kusama – Infinity Mirror Room – Phalli’s Field (1965)
Hirshhorn Museum and others
🔗 Hirshhorn – Infinity Mirror Rooms
6. Jean-Michel Basquiat – Untitled (1981)
Sotheby’s Auctions and private collections
🔗 Sotheby’s – Basquiat, Untitled (1981)
7. Tracey Emin – My Bed (1998)
Tate Britain, London
🔗 Tate – My Bed
🔗 The New Yorker – Feminism and My Bed
We are what we think, including our limiting beliefs. We get past these, we bloom.