Finlay MacKinnon was born at Poolewe, Rosshire, about 1870. Educated at the Poolewe Public School, and lived with his mother at Mossbank, Poolewe. As a young boy worked as a crofter in the Highlands, but even as young as seven he knew that he wanted to be an artist and his childish efforts with his pencil and some very humble attempts in water-colour, achieved by the aid of a shilling box of paints, started him in a course of instruction. He progressed rapidly and about 1881 he came to the notice of Henry William Banks Davis (1833-1914), R.A. who assisted his progress and in 1883 took him to London where he gave him a session's teaching at South Kensington. Other gentlemen, including Sir Kenneth Mackenzie, Bart, of Gairloch, the Marquis of Bristol, Osgood Hanbury Mackenzie, a landowner of Inverewe, Augustus Walford Weedon (1838-1908), the artist, and others gave Finlay material aid, and he was enabled to spend the winter session of 1884-1885 at South Kensington. He also studied art in both in Paris and Italy. Finlay married at St Colombus', Pont Street, London on 30 March 1898, Isabel Agnes Mackenzie Matheson (born 21 July 1873), daughter of Dr Farquhar Matheson and wife Agnes née Lee. He exhibited at the Royal Academy every year from 1909 to 1914. The call to mobilise went out in August 1914 and Finlay joined 4th Battalion, the Seaforth Highlanders and was shipped out to France in November 1914 and, rising to the rank of Captain, remained in France and Belgium for five years' service until the battalion was demobilised in October 1919. Mackinnon illustrated a book by Lt Col Haldane, 'History of the Fourth Battalion the Seaforth Highlanders'. He exhibited at the Fine Arts Society, Agnew & Sons Gallery; Bruton Gallery; Dudley Gallery; Liverpool Walker Art Gallery; New Gallery; Royal Academy; Royal Institute of Painters in Watercolours; Royal Scottish Academy and London Walker Art Gallery, he also exhibited a watercolour at Ipswich Art Club in 1923 'Mountain and Moorland'. He died in 1931, aged 61.