Miriam Works graduated cum laude from the University of Washington in Studio Art with a concentration in Art Education. Her student projects included teaching and curriculum development for the United Cerebral Palsy Center, Community Services for the Blind, and Seattle Mental Health Institute. She co-coordinated a participatory children's mural project at Columbia Elementary (Now the Orca School) in South Seattle.

For eighteen years she worked as a buyer and business manager for Seattle area galleries, including the Folk Art Gallery/La Tienda. Until 1997, she was Assistant Director for FireWorks Gallery; a rapidly growing, nationally recognized fine crafts gallery. She has taught and consulted with businesses, organizations and individual artists on marketing and business issues since 1993.