Art & design

Art & Design Courses - Online & 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

Courses available both in-person and online

We offer a range of long and short courses allowing you to choose between in-person and online learning.

Learn in the centre of London with our in-person courses. Our purpose-built facilities in Covent Garden mean we are ideally located and easy to get to. 

See our guide to online learning for more information about accessing our live online courses.

All our courses are live, interactive, and taught by expert tutors. No matter how you prefer to learn, we've got the class for you.

 

Join us for the City Lit Visual Arts open day on Saturday 18 May. Throughout the day, at our campus 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.  Find out more >

 

Filters

12 Items

per page
Set Descending Direction
  1. City Lit calligraphy
    Course start date:  Mon 23 Sep 2024

    Location on this date:  Keeley Street

    Tutors:  Emiko Hashiguchi, Veiko Kespersaks, Sharon Shaw
    Study calligraphy with this in-depth, three term programme that will equip you with the essential techniques required for beautiful cursive handwriting. The course will cover specialist skills-based training in Calligraphy with Design, blending traditional skills with an introduction to the latest trends in the calligraphy and design world. An exciting, challenging, and thorough introduction to the art of calligraphy.







    Please note this course runs on Monday evenings from 6 - 8.30pm for 32 weeks, plus one Saturday day from 10:30 - 16:30 per term. Term 1



    Mondays 02/10/23 - 11/12/23 6 – 8.30pm (11 weeks)



    Saturday 09/12/22 10:30 – 16:30







    Term 2



    Mondays 08/01/24 - 25/03/24 6 – 8.30pm (12 weeks)



    Saturday 17/02/24 10:30 – 16:30







    Term 3



    05/04/24 - 29/04/24 6 – 8.30pm (3 weeks)



    13/05/24 - 20/05/24 6 – 8.30pm (2 weeks)



    03/06/24 - 17/06/24 6 – 8.30pm (3 weeks)



    08/07/2024 (1 week)



    Saturday 15/06/24 10:30 – 16:30.
    Full fee £1,299.00 Senior fee £1,039.00 Concession £844.00
  2. City Lit animation
    Course start date:  Tue 3 Oct 2023 (and 1 other date)

    Location on this date:  Keeley Street

    Tutors:  Stephanie Griffiths, John Horabin, Litza Jansz
    Passionate 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. Want to find out if this is the right course for you? Come along to our free School of Visual Arts open day on 20th May and get expert individual advice and guidance. Search VQ009 on our website to book your free place.
    Full fee £2,269.00 Senior fee £1,815.00 Concession £1,475.00
    Rating:
    100% of 100
  3. City Lit expanded experimental film
    Course start date:  Tue 19 Sep 2023 (and 1 other date)

    Location on this date:  Blended (learn both online and in-person)

    Tutors:  Monika Kita
    Curious about contemporary approaches to filmmaking?



    Whether you have previously attended film or art related courses or simply have an interest in exploring a variety of experimental methods, this course will transform your practice.



    With an emphasis on interdisciplinary fields including animation, performance, installation and sound, the course will examine multiple applications within expanded experimental film practice.



    Through discussions, workshops, and personal projects, and by utilising a wide range of techniques, participants will gain the knowledge and practical skills necessary to create innovative and challenging artworks.



    This course will be delivered online and in person. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.
    Full fee £2,179.00 Senior fee £1,743.00 Concession £1,416.00
  4. City Lit Children's book illustration course
    Course start date:  Fri 4 Oct 2024

    Location on this date:  Keeley Street

    Tutors:  Tim Ellis, Ciara Flood, Dee Shulman, Robyn Wilson-Owen
    This 20-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.
    Full fee £1,599.00 Senior fee £1,279.00 Concession £1,039.00
  5. Developing art practice
    Weekend
    Course start date:  Sat 7 Oct 2023 (and 1 other date)

    Location on this date:  Keeley Street

    This advanced course for developing and practicing artists consists of work-based seminars facilitated by peers and artist-tutors, giving you the opportunity to develop and present your work for critical discourse. The course includes individual tutorials and mentoring, critical investigation via group crits, visits to galleries and artist-run organisations, collaborative work and discussion and debate. This course is one of the eligible programmes for application to Bloomberg New Contemporaries.



    The course will be delivered onsite.











    This course requires an application prior to enrolment. Please click 'start assessment' to begin your application.
    Full fee £1,119.00 Senior fee £895.00 Concession £783.00
  6. City Lit fine art: year 1
    Course start date:  Tue 17 Oct 2023 (and 1 other date)

    Location on this date:  Blended (learn both online and in-person)

    Year 1 of the City Lit Fine Art course will enable you to refine and build upon your previous experience in Fine Art by exploring approaches to drawing, painting, sculpture, print, digital media and contextual studies, across a series of structured projects in studio and online sessions. As part of a small cohort of like-minded students you will be taught by experienced tutors who are also practicing artists in a range different media.



    The course will enable you to develop an overview of media processes relevant to current art practice, introduce ideas and debate relevant to contemporary art, and help you identify your own personal creative responses. Group discussions and tutorials will support the development of your thinking and help you adopt an independent and open-minded approach to your own work. This course can be taken for personal creative development, to prepare you for application to undergraduate or postgraduate Fine Art courses, or to serve as an alternative to the conventional degree route.



    Some basic materials will be provided, and you will need to supplement these with specific items; a list is provided in the CLFA course handbook. 10am – 12pm online Zoom sessions on alternate Mondays (15 in total)



    10am – 5pm in City Lit studios. On alternate Tuesdays (16 in total)



    6pm – 9pm in City Lit digital media suite. On 4 or 5 alternate Tuesday evenings per term (12 in total).



    This course will be delivered online and in person. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.
    Full fee £2,179.00 Senior fee £1,743.00 Concession £1,525.00
    Rating:
    100% of 100
  7. City Lit year of the figure and portrait
    Course start date:  Mon 9 Oct 2023 (and 2 other dates)

    Location on this date:  Keeley Street

    Tutors:  Rebecca Allen, Desmond Haughton, Joe Richardson, Kim Scouller
    This 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 £2,499.00 Senior fee £1,999.00 Concession £1,624.00
    Rating:
    80% of 100
  8. Advanced graphic design
    Course start date:  Mon 7 Oct 2024

    Location on this date:  Keeley Street

    This course will help you improve your skills in graphic design and visual communications in their broadest sense, for delivery or publication in print and online, working with text, image, layout, medium and message across a range of physical and digital media and formats.



    It is ideal for anyone who has already completed our City Lit graphics course, and for anyone wishing to build a more extensive and professional portfolio of graphics work, whilst developing a deeper understanding of the connection between text, image, message and media.



    Confirmed industry specialist guests: Lydia Thornley, Designer, Creative Director and Reportage Illustrator and award winning film producer/director Mark Craig, maker of the film “The Last Man On The Moon”.
    Full fee £2,399.00 Senior fee £1,919.00 Concession £1,679.00
  9. City Lit fine art: year 3
    Weekend
    Course start date:  Sat 12 Oct 2024

    Location on this date:  Keeley Street

    Tutors:  Rolina Elsje Blok, Anne-Marie Foster, Alexandra Harley, Monika Kita, Amanda Knight, Steven Scott
    Year 3 (VM553) is the culmination of the CLFA course and combines practical studio sessions with a professional and externally focussed remit designed to enable you to further refine your creative work and enhance your professional capabilities in the development of an independent artistic practice. The course encourages students to find and pursue external opportunities relevant to their practice such as organising an exhibition or collaborating with external organisations.



    Building upon and consolidating the learnings gained in year 1 and 2 of CLFA, or on your experience of practicing and studying to an equivalent level, you will pursue an individual, self-motivated route through year 3. This will be based upon an existing portfolio, defined intentions, and ongoing creative projects. The Year 3 course is designed to support individual development of new artwork that extends an existing creative practice. It will also allow you to enhance this with an understanding of professional activities that might include the process of making funding applications, finding exhibition opportunities, or developing external relationships. You will be able to engage with practicing artist/tutors in group critiques, one-to-one tutorials, seminars, and self-motivated studio production sessions in which you can explore and refine your skills and creative ideas. There will be engagement with ideas and contexts, and professional practice-based sessions that support the development of your creative work so that it can be sustained beyond the duration of the course.







    Note: this course runs on Saturday daytimes fortnightly, and occasional Sundays.
    Full fee £1,649.00 Senior fee £1,319.00 Concession £1,154.00
  10. City Lit fine art: year 2
    Course start date:  Mon 9 Oct 2023 (and 1 other date)

    Location on this date:  Blended (learn both online and in-person)

    Tutors:  Kath Castillo, Amanda Knight, Steven Scott
    Year 2 of the City Lit Fine Art course enables you to consolidate and focus the various experiences and ideas you will have gained in year 1. (Direct entry to year 2 is also possible, via interview, if you have an appropriate level of prior experience.) You will adopt simple research methods to reflect upon, identify and develop a personal creative project on a more individual, self-motivated route. This will result in the development of a cohesive body of new work that reflects your own interests. You will have group critiques, one-to-one tutorials and all day studio production sessions that allow you to explore and refine your creative skills, and seminars and presentations in which you will engage with new ideas and contexts; all delivered by experienced, practicing artists. Some basic materials are included.



    You will have the opportunity to help organise and present some of your recent work in a group exhibition, via negotiation and with the support of your tutors. 2 – 4pm online Zoom sessions on alternate Mondays (15 in total)



    10am – 5pm in City Lit studios. On alternate Tuesdays (16 in total)



    6pm – 9pm in City Lit digital media suite. On 4 or 5 alternate Tuesday evenings per term (12 in total.



    This course will be delivered online and in person. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.
    Full fee £2,179.00 Senior fee £1,743.00 Concession £1,525.00
  11. City Lit mixed media and drawing projects
    Course start date:  Thu 17 Oct 2024

    Location on this date:  Keeley Street

    Tutors:  Ruth Franklin
    The City Lit mixed media and drawing projects course will introduce you to a wide range of exciting projects across two terms, exploring drawing, collage and printmaking, working in both two and three dimensional contexts. The course promotes and encourages engagement and experimentation with different techniques, materials and concepts, developing a portfolio of diverse and personal creative work.



    This course takes place in the studio alongside students on the Ceramics Portfolio course.
    Full fee £1,599.00 Senior fee £1,279.00 Concession £1,039.00
  12. Pottery
    Course start date:  Tue 12 Sep 2023 (and 3 other dates)

    Location on this date:  Keeley Street

    Tutors:  Amy Hughes, Alex Simpson
    Experience and explore all the making techniques in ceramics: coiling, slab-building, press moulds and throwing on the wheel. Also included is an introduction to basic glazing and simple glaze mixing.
    Full fee £1,339.00 Senior fee £1,071.00 Concession £870.00
    Rating:
    93% of 100
per page
Set Descending Direction

Can't see a course you want?

Add this category to your waiting list to set up alerts and we will update you when new courses are released online.

Add me to waiting list