Lawrence Macdonald was a Scottish

Scotland

Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...

 sculptor.

He was born at Findo Gask

Findo Gask

Findo Gask is a small village in Perth and Kinross in Scotland, just off the main A9 road. It is in Strathearn, the valley of the River Earn.There are nearby remains associated with the Roman Road to the south and the Roman Frontier on the Gask Ridge....

 in Perthshire

Perthshire

Perthshire, officially the County of Perth , is a registration county in central Scotland. It extends from Strathmore in the east, to the Pass of Drumochter in the north, Rannoch Moor and Ben Lui in the west, and Aberfoyle in the south...

, Scotland

Scotland

Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...

.

In early life he served as a mason's apprentice. Having shown an aptitude for stone carving, he became an art student at the Trustees Academy, Edinburgh

Edinburgh

Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...

. By the help of friends he was enabled to visit Rome

Rome

Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...

, where together with other artists he helped to found the British Academy of Arts. He returned to Edinburgh in 1826. In 1829 he was elected a member of the Scottish Academy. From 1832 until his death his home was in Rome.