Craig A. Miller, Sr. (Hefenua Maa) is from the Metropolitan East towns of Madison and Brooklyn, Illinois. Craig attended Western Illinois University from 1982 to 1984. He then transferred to the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee where He graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Architectural Studies in December of 1986. Craig practiced as an Intern Architect for four years in Chicago, Illinois. He entered graduate school at the University of Illinois at Chicago in1990 and earned a Master of Architecture Degree in 1993. While attending the universities listed above, Craig took several art courses such as: life drawing; painting; drawing in architecture; architectural photography; figure drawing; general art and design studios and the history of art and architecture. During the summer of 1991, Craig attended at the Art Institute of Chicago where He took classes in figure drawing and art and design.

As a result of his training as an architect, which included rigorous technical drawing, Craig desired an artistic outlet, which would free him from the constraints of architectural drafting. Therefore, he developed a love of creating free flowing abstract drawings and paintings executed in an extemporaneous or improvised manner.