Léon Indenbaum  was born into the family of  lace dealer. The young Leo went to the heder until he was thirteen. He then studied at a traditional school, where he learned how to work wood. His director noticed his talent and offered him a scholarship to study at  the School of Fine Arts in Odessa, where he worked in clay and carved wood. He then studied to be a wood-carver and cabinet-maker at the drawing classes of the Antokolski Applied Arts Society in Vilna (Vilnius).