Graphic Design & Illustration Courses
At City Lit, our exciting range of graphic design and ilustration courses will give you a creative insight into working with images and text in an emerging and innovative area. Explore a range of concepts and creative processes, within the areas of graphic design, illustration, children’s book illustration and animation, learning how to produce work visually in a diverse and exciting way.
Working with industry professionals and experienced tutors in our fully equipped design studios, students will have access to everything they need to complete their next creative challenge. Our studios offer space for creativity with all the equipment your need, including Apple Mac computers, Adobe CC software, Wacom tablets, a range of printers and scanners including access to our 3D printing and laser cutting digital suite.
We encourage playful experimentation, working with both analogue and digital tools. Our courses range from drafting story boards and cartoon design to film poster graphics, from typography and magazine layout to printed creative packaging and digital illustrations.
We host exhibitions throughout the year at City Lit Gallery where our students showcase their amazing work.
To arrange a conversation with our Visual communication coordinator about your interests, options and courses available, please contact our Visual Arts team at visualarts@citylit.ac.uk
- Illustrating animalsCourse start date: Thu 18 Sep 2025
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Ciara FloodAnimals are all around us – even in London! From Trafalgar Square’s flocks of pigeons, to rodents on the Underground, to the dog-filled squares and parks. Despite their ubiquity, animals are notoriously hard to draw – as, anatomically speaking, they’re so different to humans – as well as to each other! And, they don’t like to pose!
Learn how to overcome these challenges in our ‘Illustrating Animals’ workshop.
Our Workshops enable you to take a deep dive into a specific process, media or tool.
They 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 theory or context, although this varies by course.Full fee £239.00 Senior fee £191.00 Concession £155.00 - Illustrating people and placesCourse start date: Sun 21 Sep 2025 (and 1 other date)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Be inspired by the people of London and the architecture and environments they inhabit. This course all about drawing people and places, providing you with ample opportunity observe London life, situations and scenarios that will inspire your work.
Learn how to document and sketch from life in different locations and then develop artwork into compelling illustrations that are full of life.Full fee £239.00 Senior fee £191.00 Concession £155.00 - Developing illustrationCourse start date: Mon 22 Sep 2025
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Adam Graff, Lucia VintiOur ‘Developing' courses help you take your next step in a chosen creative field.
This course will help progress your illustration practice by further exploring the practical skills (using a variety of analogue and digital media) and conceptual skills (researching and developing your ideas) integral to the discipline. You will also begin to consider which of the many ‘applications’ of illustration your developing personal style might lend itself to; for example, editorial, fashion, book, or product illustration, to name a few. - Illustration into printmakingCourse 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 - City Lit Children's book illustration courseCourse 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. - Explore: creative collageCourse start date: Sun 19 Oct 2025
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Pam WilliamsFrom the early 20th century onwards, the advent of ‘mass’ media – newspapers, magazines, leaflets, packaging - led to some of the most innovative artistic movements in Western culture: Dada, Surrealism, Bauhaus, Punk.
Arguably, these movements (all of which centralised ‘collage’), have had more of a bearing on contemporary graphic design than anything else. Think of the countless adverts, websites, and social media posts which owe a debt to Jamie Reid’s ‘Sex Pistols’ album designs (which, in turn, owe their existence to the Dadaists).
The methodology of collage should therefore play a role in any good design practice.
Our Workshops enable you to take a deep dive into a specific process, media or tool.
They 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 theory or context, although this varies by course.Full fee £89.00 Senior fee £89.00 Concession £89.00 - Explore: GIF making for illustrationCourse start date: Sun 9 Nov 2025 (and 1 other date)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Sophie WolfsonThis one-day course is an introduction to creating animated gifs using hand-drawn illustrated images.
Full fee £89.00 Senior fee £89.00 Concession £89.00 - Explore: Gel plate printingCourse start date: Sun 23 Nov 2025
Location on this date: Keeley Street
This one-day course is an introduction to Gel Plate Printing and will explore various techniques to mark-making and image creation. You will learn how this print technique can be used within your own Illustration and Graphic Design projects.
Full fee £89.00 Senior fee £89.00 Concession £89.00 - Explore: Gel plate printingCourse start date: Sun 23 Nov 2025 (and 2 other dates)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
This one-day course is an introduction to Gel Plate Printing and will explore various techniques to mark-making and image creation. You will learn how this print technique can be used within your own Illustration and Graphic Design projects.
Full fee £89.00 Senior fee £89.00 Concession £89.00 - Explore: zine makingCourse start date: Sun 7 Dec 2025
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Pam WilliamsZines (short for magazine) are low-cost, self-made publications that offer an opportunity to be playful and creative. Use just about any topic as a starting point and explore various approaches and techniques to bring your zine to life.
An ideal workshop for any artists, illustrators or designers who wishes to explore self-made work.Full fee £89.00 Senior fee £89.00 Concession £89.00
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