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
- Visual Arts Open Day
Course start date: Sat 10 May 2025Location on this date: Keeley Street
Join us for the annual City Lit Visual Arts open day. Throughout the day, at our HQ in Covent Garden, you will have the opportunity to immerse yourself in the full range and variety of our art and design subjects on offer.Full fee £0.00 - Developing watercolour painting Course start date: Sat 14 Jun 2025 (and 10 other dates)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Anne-Marie FosterExplore the specific qualities of watercolour and the opportunities this adaptable medium offers to create dynamic painting compositions. Develop a fluency with brush work and layering of colour to develop compositional possibilities.Full fee £229.00 Senior fee £183.00 Concession £149.00 - Introduction to beaded jewellery Course start date: Sat 17 May 2025 (and 1 other date)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Beverley SellExplore traditional and contemporary beaded jewellery techniques such as stringing and knotting and learn about which beaded jewellery materials and tools to use to create a professional finish.
You will take inspiration from current fashion accessories seen on the catwalk to create your own beaded jewellery and a striking final piece.Full fee £329.00 Senior fee £263.00 Concession £214.00 - Introduction to watercolour painting Course start date: Sat 17 May 2025 (and 6 other dates)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Rebecca AllenGain a grounding in the rich possibilities available when working with watercolour paint. Through a series of practical studies, you will investigate the potential of this versatile medium.Full fee £319.00 Senior fee £255.00 Concession £207.00 - Photography for beginners Course start date: Sat 27 Sep 2025 (and 17 other dates)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Sara Leigh LewisAlways wondered what half the buttons on your camera actually do? Discover how to use them properly and produce impressive photographs, even as a complete beginner. Gain useful technical knowledge and get expert creative guidance in easy-to-understand language. An ideal first step before enrolling on our intermediate courses.Full fee £389.00 Senior fee £311.00 Concession £253.00 - Textiles sketchbook course Course start date: Sat 31 May 2025
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Ruth BrisonDevelop a creative and experimental sketchbook. Explore the surface qualities of drawing and mark-making with the layered possibilities of mixed-media and hand stitch. You'll have the chance to generate visual research and ideas towards a personal project.Full fee £239.00 Senior fee £191.00 Concession £155.00 - Contemporary watercolour painting projects Course start date: Sat 12 Jul 2025 (and 6 other dates)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Anne-Marie FosterThrough a set of short projects inspired by contemporary practitioners and their contribution to the uniqueness of the medium, the course will help you expand your understanding of watercolour and enable you to make informed choices in making personal work. It will also feature some approaches to painting, beyond the immediate western tradition to provide broader technical and critical insights.Full fee £369.00 Senior fee £295.00 Concession £240.00 - Mosaics introductory Course start date: Sat 20 Sep 2025 (and 1 other date)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Vanessa BensonDevelop your creative skills in this classic art form, adhering your materials to a temporary surface before applying the completed section to a flat base or casting it into concrete to complete your own Mosaic. Please bring ideas. Basic materials provided. All levels are welcome.Full fee £509.00 Senior fee £407.00 Concession £331.00 - Modern calligraphy Course start date: Sat 7 Jun 2025 (and 1 other date)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Veiko KespersaksLearn how to write elegant stylish letterforms using a flexible pointed nib with ink. Once you have learnt how to write a basic alphabet, we’ll begin breaking the rules of traditional calligraphy to find a style that is all your own. The course is suitable for beginners as well as improvers.Full fee £359.00 Senior fee £287.00 Concession £233.00 - Introduction to stone setting: raised grain setting Course start date: Sat 7 Jun 2025
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Rae DuncanGrain setting, sometimes referred to as bead setting, is a technique where small faceted stones are held in place by small prongs called beads. These are raised from the metal in the band using an engraving tool. This specialist technique builds on the basic stone setting methods, introducing the use of a new set of tools and skills and is perfect for those wishing to take their stone-setting to a higher level. - Looking at photography: commercial practice Course start date: Sat 7 Jun 2025 (and 2 other dates)
Location on this date: Kean Street Photography Studio
Tutors: Ed GregoryLooking to work professionally as a photographer? Pick up key skills you will need on this practical course from camera systems, lighting solutions, paperwork and software workflow.Full fee £79.00 Senior fee £79.00 Concession £79.00 - Painting and Drawing Dialogues: shaping time Course start date: Sat 7 Jun 2025
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Tony Hull, Monika KitaReflect on how time is embodied in the surface of paintings and drawings to focus on the speed and sequence of your working methods. Discover how animation and film can aid and capture your creative process.Full fee £429.00 Senior fee £343.00 Concession £279.00 - Textiles and surface pattern: colour and abstract design Course start date: Sat 14 Jun 2025
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Janie MurphyA creative exploration of colour and abstract design for textiles. Explore and develop your understanding of colour using using paper dyes to create your own abstract imagery.Full fee £249.00 Senior fee £199.00 Concession £162.00 - Bookbinding: experiments in paper folding Course start date: Sat 14 Jun 2025
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Ina BaumeisterExplore colour, structure, and layering to produce exciting sculptural forms. By combining and extending techniques such as origami and concertina folding, cutting, piercing and slotting, you will create your own unique books. - Screen printing in a day Course start date: Sat 20 Sep 2025 (and 3 other dates)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Rolina Elsje BlokIn this fun, 1-day workshop you will be taught how to print and register a two colour screenprint using monoprint, colour blends and pre-made photographic screens. You will be taught some basic screen making process and insight into making digital artwork. This will set you up for longer and more advanced screenprinting classes.Full fee £139.00 Senior fee £139.00 Concession £139.00
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