City Lit Art School — Art Classes in London
Explore new and exciting subjects within a range of art and design disciplines, develop your skill set, get the support required to change career or launch yourself as a freelance artist or designer. All this and more delivered through our practical and engaging art and design courses at City Lit.
Our range of part-time, weekend and evening art and design classes are taught by successful artists and practitioners to ensure you get the skills, knowledge and experience you want and deserve. From experimental painting and drawing to contemporary jewellery making, there is sure to be a course for you. Study from 1 day to 2 years, whether you are a complete beginner or a practising artist preparing for an MA. Our courses are designed with you in mind, so you get to spend more time doing what you love.
Set a new goal, start your next creative adventure with City Lit and let us support you to realise your ambitions.
We host exhibitions throughout the year at City Lit Gallery where our students showcase their amazing work.
Any questions? Contact our visual arts team on visual.arts@citylit.ac.uk
- Painting: oil techniques and mediums
Course start date: Mon 12 May 2025 (and 1 other date)Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Sisetta ZapponeOil paint is a medium with a long historical tradition, capable of heavy impasto effects and delicate transparent colour films. Working practically, in the studio, this course will expand your understanding of approaches to building a variety of surfaces in your paint working with mediums and expanding your use of texture and glazing This course is for all levels – both beginners and more experienced painters.Full fee £199.00 Senior fee £159.00 Concession £129.00 - Introduction to carving in wood or stone Course start date: Sun 1 Jun 2025
Location on this date: Keeley Street
. - Japanese woodcut printmaking Course start date: Sun 1 Jun 2025 (and 2 other dates)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Carol Justin WilhideAn introduction to the beautiful and delicate printmaking world of Japanese Woodcut. Explore this water based, non-toxic process and build an appreciation for the handmade. You will learn how to design, carve and make a multi-coloured print. Beginners welcome.Full fee £319.00 Senior fee £255.00 Concession £207.00 - London photography: River Thames Course start date: Tue 3 Jun 2025 (and 1 other date)
Location on this date: Off Site
Tutors: Michael HardingExplore and discover London through photography walks around locations rich in photographic potential.
The walks revolve around photographing views along the River Thames, from the Aldwych area eastwards to the City, from London Bridge to the Southbank and from Westminster to the newly developed Nine Elms area. Bring your own camera and comfortable walking shoes as you capture places, spaces, objects and people.Full fee £139.00 Senior fee £139.00 Concession £139.00 - Collage and mixed media: experimental approaches Course start date: Tue 3 Jun 2025 (and 1 other date)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Ruth BrisonCollage is an exciting, accessible and creative medium. Experiment with a rich variety of materials and found images to make vibrant work experimenting with surface, form, colour and pattern, inspired by artists who make effective use of this way of working.Full fee £229.00 Senior fee £183.00 Concession £149.00 - Life drawing after work Course start date: Thu 5 Jun 2025 (and 4 other dates)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Joe RichardsonA fun, relaxed and shorter life drawing class better suited for people coming straight from work. You will be able to work from a variety of life models, in a range of materials and with a variety of poses. You will be working from the unclothed model, both male and female.Full fee £149.00 Senior fee £149.00 Concession £149.00 - Introduction to children's book illustration Course start date: Thu 5 Jun 2025 (and 1 other date)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Dee ShulmanOur Introductory courses provide a perfect way-in to a creative field.
The Children’s Book industry is thriving, largely due to rising literacy levels, and a growing awareness of the importance of early childhood education. As a result, Children’s Book creators are in demand.
Our tutors will teach you the many and various skills you’ll need to illustrate books for children - from drawing and painting (analogue and digital), to sequencing and pacing visual narratives.
You'll learn about the children’s publishing sector; gaining a sense of the different genres and markets for children's books, and where your illustration style might fit.Full fee £369.00 Senior fee £295.00 Concession £240.00 - Drawing: ink and wash techniques Course start date: Fri 6 Jun 2025 (and 2 other dates)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Jack DuplockThe immediacy and versatility of ink and wash is perfect for those sketching on location, for designers and for students interested in watercolour techniques. Take the opportunity to explore the basic techniques of this exciting process.Full fee £199.00 Senior fee £159.00 Concession £129.00 - Portrait painting: two session pose Course start date: Sat 7 Jun 2025 (and 2 other dates)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Luke JonesDevelop a portrait from life: a structured course to build skills towards making a convincing portrait where the model keeps the same pose over 2 sessions to enable a sustained piece of work.Full fee £209.00 Senior fee £167.00 Concession £136.00 - Printmaking weekend: Collagraph techniques Course start date: Sat 7 Jun 2025
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Rosey PrinceMake and print a collagraph exploiting texture and colour using readily available and simple materials with a low environmental impact. The handmade matrix is deceptively simple to construct, the printed results often richer and more detailed than expected when run through the press. All welcome.Full fee £169.00 Senior fee £169.00 Concession £169.00 - Textiles: constructing pattern, colouring cloth Course start date: Sun 8 Jun 2025
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Dawn DupreeExperiment with a range of heat transfer processes and hand painting methods. Develop initial ideas through mark-making and collage. Create fabrics or art works using a personal colour palette and embellish surface through foil print and simple stitch marks. - Introduction to collage and mixed media Course start date: Sun 8 Jun 2025 (and 1 other date)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Sam HannerCollage is an exciting, accessible and creative medium. Experiment with a rich variety of materials and found images to make vibrant work experimenting with surface, form, colour and pattern, inspired by artists who make effective use of this way of working.Full fee £279.00 Senior fee £223.00 Concession £181.00 - Calligraphy: modern copperplate variations Course start date: Wed 11 Jun 2025
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Veiko KespersaksLearn how to use a pointed pen for writing in copperplate hand, which is famous for its fine lines, hand-made quality and romantic overtones.This fun class is an introduction to Spencerian script and its connection to basic strokes and letterforms. You will also learn the history of Spencerian script and it will give you some new knowledge of penmanship. Suitable for both beginners and improvers, left and right handers. - Sketching at the museum: Tate Modern Course start date: Thu 12 Jun 2025
Location on this date: Off Site
Tutors: Steve WrightExploring the pleasure and challenge of sketchbooks; learn and improve your drawing skills and 'ways of seeing' and understanding, working from an exciting range of artworks in Tate modern. - Woodblock printmaking: experimental approaches Course start date: Fri 13 Jun 2025
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Gareth BerwynLearn how to create multicolour or monochrome relief prints. You'll be encouraged to work from your own source imagery (sketches, magazine cuttings, photos etc) as an inspirational lead-in to producing relief prints to take home.Full fee £229.00 Senior fee £183.00 Concession £149.00
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