Paton Miller was born in Seattle, Washington in 1953, but was raised in in Honolulu, Hawaii.

In 1972 Miller attended the Honolulu Academy of Arts. He spent the next year traveling throughout  Asia and Europe drawing and painting.
In 1974 Miller visited a friend in Southampton, NY who recommended him to visit Southampton College (now Stonybrook Southampton). Here, Miller received a scholarship from the drawings he completed on his travels throughout Asia and Europe. After graduating in 1978, Miller began exhibiting in NYC, nationally and internationally.
In 2014 Miller began curating East End Collected at the Southampton Arts Center where he has shown the work of over 300 artists.
Miller currently lives with his family in Southampton NY.