Lora Murphy is a distinguished encaustic painter whose passion for the ancient medium has made her a notable figure in the contemporary art world. Born in Ireland and educated in Ireland, the United States, and Italy, Lora earned honors degrees in both History of European Painting and Archaeology before going on to train as an oil painter in a traditional atelier in Florence, Italy. The discovery of encaustic changed her life, and she now works primarily in encaustic and mixed media.

As she says, "once I tried encaustic, I was totally hooked, and I have been fortunate to be able to apply my traditional knowledge of painting to the encaustic medium. And I found along the way that I just love teaching. I am so inspired by watching all of my students gain so much confidence and reach new levels with their work. Even those with no experience of either encaustic or portraiture can do amazing work.”

After living and painting all over the world, Lora moved back to her Irish roots in 2017, and created a vibrant and hugely popular art school in the West of Ireland. At Essence of Mulranny (EOM) Studios Mulranny Co Mayo she welcomes visiting teachers and students from many countries and helps create a vibrant art scene for locals and visitors alike. Lora teaches workshops in Contemporary Portraiture in Encaustic at EOM Studios, several international classes in the USA and online as well as offering yearly painting trips to Egypt Lora sold her first paintings at 12 years old and has shown her work since 1985. Over the years, Lora has showcased her work in numerous exhibitions both locally and internationally. Her unique approach to encaustic painting has garnered her accolades and a loyal following of art enthusiasts and collectors. In addition to her art practice, Lora is a fervent educator, conducting workshops and sharing her knowledge about the encaustic medium with budding artists. Since 2021 she has facilitated the amazing online encaustic educational program, Painting with Fire, which has garnered great accolades from the art community worldwide and has over 3000 students.