Leo was born in 1947 in Sweden after his Estonian parents fled to the nearby country to escape Soviet repression after the USSR invaded the Baltic. He came to Canada when he was three.

Leo is a participant of The Haliburton County Studio Tour, where art lovers watch him demonstrate forging techniques and visit his home gallery. Leo's artwork takes the form of caricatures, wall splays, gargoyles, masks, furniture, garden sculptures, wildlife, weather vanes and much more.