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
- Typography, typefaces and fonts
Course start date: Mon 22 Sep 2025Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Andrew McCartenAll designers know, images are powerful. But have you ever considered the look of your text? In other words, the typeface? It’s amazing how many designers overlook this powerful aspect of communication. Words are powerful (of course), but it’s not just what they say, it’s how they say it. On this workshop, learn how to harness the power of type.
Take a deep dive into a specific process, media or tool, with our Visual Communication Workshops.
Workshops throw the spotlight onto niche areas of the visual communication field, enabling you to hone higher-level skills and gain deeper insights.
Workshops tend to have a practical focus, with little or no conceptual or contextual elements, although this varies by course.Full fee £239.00 Senior fee £191.00 Concession £155.00 - Calligraphy and illumination Course start date: Tue 29 Apr 2025 (and 1 other date)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Emiko HashiguchiLearn how to write beautifully with a dip pen and design and produce a piece of work with illuminated letters using colour and gold leaf. All levels.Full fee £299.00 Senior fee £239.00 Concession £194.00 - City Lit animation Course start date: Tue 23 Sep 2025
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Stephanie Griffiths, Litza JanszPassionate about animation? Fancy spending a year building skills in traditional and digital animation techniques and producing your own animation project? Taught by professional animators, this exciting fast-track practical course gives you the opportunity to explore both commercial and experimental approaches to animation using professional equipment and software. Whether you’re a complete beginner or have some animation experience you can join our award winning alumni. A fantastic start to a new career or simply a chance to pursue your passion with like-minded people.
To see a showreel of student work click here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ySgnN_DcJjA.Full fee £2,499.00 Senior fee £1,999.00 Concession £1,624.00 - City Lit expanded experimental filmCourse start date: Tue 23 Sep 2025
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Lucy Ellis, Monika Kita, Fiona Jane WalshCurious about contemporary approaches to experimental film?
This interdisciplinary course is designed for artists, filmmakers, and creatives eager to explore film beyond conventional boundaries. This course is an invitation to challenge conventional filmmaking by integrating elements from performance, theatre, puppetry, animation, installation and sound—encouraging you to rethink and expand your creative approach.
Led by an artist and filmmaker, alongside guest practitioners from various creative fields, this course fosters an environment for interdisciplinary exploration, encouraging new ways of thinking and making. Through hands-on workshops, discussions, and personal projects, you will gain both practical skills and conceptual insights to expand your creative practice.
Term 1: 23/09/2025 – 02/12/2025
Term 2: 3/01/2026 – 24/03/2026
Term 3: 1/04/2026 – 30/06/2026
Extra tutorials will be held between terms.Full fee £2,999.00 Senior fee £2,399.00 Concession £1,949.00 - Lithography print workshopCourse start date: Tue 23 Sep 2025
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Simon BurderLearn how to produce work that mimics a painterly style using lithography printmaking processes. Lithography depends on the delicate balance between grease and water and can provide a broad range of outcomes. Learn how marks and brush strokes drawn and painted on the printing plate can be faithfully reproduced to create bold or subtle prints.Full fee £239.00 Senior fee £191.00 Concession £155.00 - Illustration into printmaking Course start date: Wed 24 Sep 2025 (and 2 other dates)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
This course is a playful, explorative and creative introduction into the collaborative world of illustration and printmaking.
Full fee £239.00 Senior fee £191.00 Concession £155.00 - Jewellery: stone setting ICourse start date: Thu 25 Sep 2025
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Rae DuncanEnjoy making your own jewellery, but want to develop your mount-making and stone-setting techniques? Discover essential techniques in setting a gem stone, including round bezel and tube settings, with the guidance of an expert tutor.
Full fee £419.00 Senior fee £335.00 Concession £272.00 - City Lit pre-foundation course Course start date: Fri 26 Sep 2025 (and 2 other dates)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Marcus RichardsThis exciting and intensive course supports you to develop the key creative skills, methods and thinking in art and design, across 2D, 3D and critical studies required for entry to our UAL-validated Level 3 Foundation Diploma in Art & Design.Full fee £949.00 Senior fee £759.00 Concession £664.00 - Portraits 2 Course start date: Fri 26 Sep 2025
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Luke Jones, Andrea VoiseyDevelop your knowledge of the technical aspects of portraiture further and expore your understanding of what makes a convincing portrait. Undertake practical projects which enable you to develop a personal approach to the subject as the course progresses.Full fee £479.00 Senior fee £383.00 Concession £311.00 - City Lit Children's book illustration course Course start date: Fri 26 Sep 2025
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Tim Ellis, Ciara Flood, Dee Shulman, Robyn Wilson-OwenThis 30-week course will take you on a journey from beginner to intermediate, direct.
The Children’s Book industry is thriving, largely due to globally 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), sequencing and pacing the narrative, to editing the images digitally and overlaying text.
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. - Intermediate jewellery I Course start date: Fri 26 Sep 2025
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Sally LeesHave you taken a beginners’ course and are looking to progress your jewellery making? Develop and refine your design and making skills through guided projects applying a range of precision skills to create metal jewellery. Intermediate Jewellery I focuses on surface, hollow forms and mechanisms. You will be encouraged to experiment with scale, with an emphasis on volumetric form.
Full fee £419.00 Senior fee £335.00 Concession £272.00 - Typology and collections in photography Course start date: Mon 29 Sep 2025
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Sara EpsteinBuilding on existing knowledge, this course introduces you to the concept of Typology in photography, grouping images based on shared characteristics. Through hands-on exercises, you will explore project themes, refine your selection skills and develop a Typology series using photography, Adobe Photoshop and Bridge.Full fee £209.00 Senior fee £167.00 Concession £136.00 - City Lit year of the figure and portrait Course start date: Mon 29 Sep 2025 (and 1 other date)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Rebecca Allen, Desmond Haughton, Joe Richardson, Kim ScoullerThis is a year-long course that explores the endlessly fascinating subject of the human form through various aspects of drawing and painting the figure and portrait. For those interested in building real progress and confidence in practical skills and taught by a team of specialist tutors, you will be inspired by stimulating projects that explore historical and contemporary artists' contexts to support your creative work.Full fee £2,899.00 Senior fee £2,319.00 Concession £1,884.00 - Writing and photography: text and image workshop Course start date: Wed 1 Oct 2025 (and 2 other dates)
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Christina Dunhill, Shirley ReadWhether you are a photographer or a writer, this short course will give you ideas for combining words and images to discover new approaches and create new work.Full fee £299.00 Senior fee £239.00 Concession £194.00 - City Lit photography course Course start date: Wed 1 Oct 2025
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Catriona Gray, Michael Harding, Jad Oakes, Matthew WardDelve deep into the world of photography, working with a selection of fundamental projects that will support you in developing the confidence and skills required for your own photographic practice.
The City Lit photography course offers both knowledge and practical experience within photography, exploring its various contexts and genres. You will get to grips with your camera, explore different photographic techniques and gain new skills using industry equipment and software. Working through a series of creative projects you will start developing your own ideas and finish the course with an extensive portfolio of photographic work.Full fee £1,649.00 Senior fee £1,319.00 Concession £1,072.00
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