Ben Sams was born in Gainesville, Texas. His father, originally from the Umatilla Indian reservation in Oregon, was in the United States Army and was stationed in Texas. Sams, however, spent most of his early childhood growing up in Montana.

Early on he knew what he wanted to do because from a young age, he had shown a strong aptitude for the arts as he was constantly drawing for his friends, and was involved with the High School yearbook, drama clubs and the debate team. So with his heart and mind made up, Sams worked multiple jobs and managed to save enough money for a year's worth of Art studies at Oberlin College in Ohio. He completed his B.A. & MFA at the University of Montana, where he first met and then studied with ceram...