Lea was born in London to a Scottish father, Norman Maclagan, and his wife, Olive, who was from Cornwall.
[1] Lea spent part of her childhood at Bruton in Somerset before attending the Bournemouth College of Art where she was taught by the sculptor Joseph Hermon Cawthra.
[1][2] After moving to London to study at the Regent Street Polytechnic School of Art, Lea returned to Bournemouth where she lived for the rest of her life.
[2][3] From there she produced statuettes and sculpture groups in both bronze and plaster and was particularly noted for her portrait work.
[1][2] She also had pieces shown at the Paris Salon, with the Society of Women Artists and with the Bournemouth Arts' Club of which she was a member.