In this deeply personal and wildly inspiring episode, we sit down with Elli Milan, professional artist, art educator, and founder of Milan Art Institute and Milan Art Gallery. From discovering her talent at 15 after a spiritual awakening to rebuilding her family’s life and career after losing everything in the 2008 crash, Elli’s journey is packed with creativity, grit, reinvention, and divine guidance.
Elli opens up about the bold decisions that shaped her life, quitting traditional paths, embracing artistry as a calling, launching a global art education movement, and staying grounded in faith and purpose along the way. Her story is not just about making art, it’s about making meaning.
Key topics discussed
A divine spark at 15
- A right-brain drawing workshop changed Elli’s life unlocking a hidden talent and her love for art.
- Her first drawing shocked her parents and lit a fire that would become her lifelong passion.
From starving artist to full-time painter
- After college, Elli and her husband John became working artists creating hundreds of pieces a year for art dealers.
- Their steady income came crashing down in the 2008 financial crisis, forcing them to rebuild everything from scratch.
Losing everything and finding purpose
- Elli recounts how losing their home, vehicles, and income led to a spiritual turning point and a complete business reinvention.
- From that rock bottom moment, she built the foundation for what would become a thriving international art school.
How Milan Art Institute was born
- A check in the mail. A spontaneous trip to Ukraine. An unexpected $26,000 gift. The signs all aligned and Elli founded her first art school in 2010.
- What started in a makeshift studio space grew into a global education platform training thousands of artists worldwide.
Art as a family business
- Today, Elli, her husband, and all four of their adult children are working artists involved in Milan Art Institute.
- Her daughter Dimitra is now a successful artist and educator in her own right with over 250k Instagram followers.
Big dreams and artist villages
- Elli’s next goal? To build a large-scale arts community, a village where artists live, work, create, and thrive.
Memorable quotes
“If I can make my macho Greek dad cry with a painting, I want to do that for the rest of my life.” – Elli Milan
“College is where dreams go to die unless you need it for a license, skip it and follow your joy.” – Elli Milan
“Money follows passion. Do what lights you up, and the income will follow.” – Elli Milan
“I asked for a $1,400 check to fall out of the sky and it did.” – Elli Milan
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Where to listen & watch
YouTube: https://youtu.be/W9jlsbyHv3I
Apple Podcasts: https://tinyurl.com/mtkxjcez
Spotify: https://tinyurl.com/yhkw24v7
Amazon Music: https://tinyurl.com/2hnfynpm
Connect with Elli
Website: https://www.milanartinstitute.com
Gallery: https://milanartgallery.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ellimilan/
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