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. New for 2020 we now offer a creative portfolio of live online courses as well as our face-face studio based teaching.
Set a new goal, start your next creative adventure with City Lit and let us support you to realise your ambitions. There's a reason we’ve been rated 'Outstanding'.
Many of our courses are delivered online. For more information about our live online courses, please see our guide to online learning.
Save on selected visual arts progression courses. Get up to 15% off with our bundle offers. Find out more.
Any questions? Contact our visual arts team on visual.arts@citylit.ac.uk or call us on 020 7492 2700, Monday to Friday between 10am-12pm or 2pm-4pm.
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Children's book illustration: introduction to ideas and characters
Course Date: Mon 25 Jan 2021
Location on this date: OnlineAn introduction to character design, layout and story development, giving you a solid understanding of the industry. Develop your own style while exploring a variety of media and learn to research and develop ideas in response to a given brief. Basic materials provided.
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee: £309.00Senior fee: £247.00Concession: £155.00 -
Start a career in: commercial photography
Course Date: Mon 25 Jan 2021
Location on this date: OnlineHaving a great knowledge of photography is important but now you’ve accomplished that, what’s your next step?
This online interactive course comprises three 2-hour online lectures on the business of photography.
This course will prepare you to compete in the challenging world of client-facing photography in the areas of Advertising and Editorial/Design. You’ll be taught by knowledgeable and highly experienced professional practitioners who bring all their skills and experience to help launch or evolve your professional practice.
This course is FREE if a) you live in London and your job is at risk of redundancy or b) you are either on Jobseekers' Allowance (JSA) or Employment & Support Allowance(ESA) or c) you receive other state benefits (including Universal Credit) and your monthly take home pay is less than £343. For more information click here
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee: £79.00Senior fee: £79.00Concession: £79.00 -
Painting: application, handling and layering
Course Date: Mon 25 Jan 2021 (and 1 other date)
Location on this date: OnlineThis short online module in painting will introduce fundamental elements associated with paint handling and layering techniques. You will also work on colour relationships and expand your knowledge and understanding of the language and technical terms used in painting to help support your practice.
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee: £149.00Senior fee: £119.00Concession: £75.00 -
How to draw: a complete course for beginners
Course Date: Mon 25 Jan 2021
Location on this date: OnlineA complete introductory course designed to help you begin your artistic journey. You will learn how to set up a drawing environment, how to prepare, hold and use your tools along with time tested drawing techniques.
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee: £339.00Senior fee: £271.00Concession: £207.00 -
Preparing for art college: a practical guide
Course Date: Tue 26 Jan 2021
Location on this date: OnlineBuild a wide-ranging portfolio of artwork either to boost your artistic growth or in support of an application to an art college course such as a foundation.
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee: £379.00Senior fee: £303.00Concession: £231.00 -
Fundamentals of graphic design
Course Date: Tue 26 Jan 2021
Location on this date: OnlineThis course will give you a strong basis for creative problem solving, developing creative responses and being able to acknowledge how good graphic design is used within the world we engage with on a daily basis. Working on a series of short engaging tasks supported by contextual references and 1:1 support, you will build both subject confidence and the ability to produce creative solutions and responses.
This course is FREE if a) you live in London and your job is at risk of redundancy or b) you are either on Jobseekers' Allowance (JSA) or Employment & Support Allowance(ESA) or c) you receive other state benefits (including Universal Credit) and your monthly take home pay is less than £343. For more information click here
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee: £219.00Senior fee: £175.00Concession: £110.00 -
In depth: German art and the Weimar Republic 1918-1933
Course Date: Wed 27 Jan 2021
Location on this date: OnlineFocusing on the vibrant culture of the Weimar Republic, this course considers the variety of German artistic movements which emerged between the two world wars.
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee: £169.00Senior fee: £135.00Concession: £103.00 -
The artist's statement
Course Date: Wed 27 Jan 2021
Location on this date: OnlineBuilding on the ability to reflect on one’s own practice, and the identification of interests, themes and relevant contexts, this professional practice module is designed to help visual arts practitioners to develop the ability to talk or write about their own work in coherent ways, and to articulate their intention, meaning or reflection in declarative or discursive statements. All artists are required to make statements at certain times, whether for exhibition, application for funding or study. In this session, we examine and discuss approaches to constructing a statement, based on specific requirements, and how to write or speak about one's work in terms of target audience, level of knowledge, and the length and depth required to articulate what work means and how it relates to ideas, themes and contexts. Although open to anyone on a standalone basis, this workshop will be of particular value to those who have completed 'Reflecting on practice' (VPP410).
For this workshop, please select an image that you feel illustrates your 'subject'. This needn't necessarily be heavy on content, or meaning, you should just be able to make a connection between the work, and what you intend it to communicate.
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee: £89.00Senior fee: £89.00Concession: £89.00 -
Typography workshop: designing and working with type
Course Date: Wed 27 Jan 2021 (and 1 other date)
Location on this date: OnlineUnlock your creativity and kick start an experimental approach to producing your own exciting design solutions.
This course is FREE if a) you live in London and your job is at risk of redundancy or b) you are either on Jobseekers' Allowance (JSA) or Employment & Support Allowance(ESA) or c) you receive other state benefits (including Universal Credit) and your monthly take home pay is less than £343. For more information click here
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee: £129.00Senior fee: £103.00Concession: £65.00 -
Designing textiles using Photoshop II
Course Date: Thu 28 Jan 2021 (and 1 other date)
Location on this date: Mixed Mode (Online and Onsite)Learn Photoshop and design techniques in order to develop your textile design work. Expand your artwork creatively to build of portfolio of ideas while developing a collection of designs and prints.
You will need access to the most recent version of Adobe Photoshop, if you require use of a licence please contact Visualarts@citylit.ac.uk.
This course is FREE if a) you live in London and your job is at risk of redundancy or b) you are either on Jobseekers' Allowance (JSA) or Employment & Support Allowance(ESA) or c) you receive other state benefits (including Universal Credit) and your monthly take home pay is less than £343. For more information click here
This course will be delivered online and onsite. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee: £329.00Senior fee: £263.00Concession: £165.00 -
Ethical creative practice
Course Date: Thu 28 Jan 2021
Location on this date: OnlineThis professional practice workshop is a forum for discussion and debate: what constitutes ethical creativity? Cultural and environmental issues, among others, are central to our lives and the contribution artists and practitioners can make is vital. Can we ‘do no harm’ when we make art? Can we make art that has zero or low carbon? Where are our materials coming from? How do history or political movements impact on us and how might we reflect these, without appropriating from another culture? What other harmful impacts might we consider? We will examine how art can promote, reflect or reference ethical issues and causes, looking at theoretical as well as actual examples, and the wider social/cultural context. This workshop will help you develop or refine an ethical framework for your own practice, and to learn from other artists. Potential topics include: socially motivated art, gender and the gaze, ethnicity and the postcolonial, looking at artists such as Hetain Patel, Ellie Harrison, John Akomfrah, Isaac Julien and Zanhele Muholi, whose work gives us platforms to consider our own and our society’s moral and ethical positions.
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee: £89.00Senior fee: £89.00Concession: £89.00 -
Final Cut Pro X: stage 1
Course Date: Thu 28 Jan 2021
Location on this date: OnlineWant to edit video like a professional? Get to grips with the industry software Final Cut Pro X on this intensive introductory course, learning the basic principles and technical skills of editing movie footage. Discover the conventions of professional editing, how to construct a narrative, and the technical features specific to Final Cut Pro X, trying your hand at basic cutting techniques to produce seamless videos on your own computer.
This course is FREE if a) you live in London and your job is at risk of redundancy or b) you are either on Jobseekers' Allowance (JSA) or Employment & Support Allowance(ESA) or c) you receive other state benefits (including Universal Credit) and your monthly take home pay is less than £343. For more information click here
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee: £249.00Senior fee: £199.00Concession: £125.00 -
A short introduction to cut out animation
Course Date: Thu 28 Jan 2021
Location on this date: OnlineLearn how to make your own traditional 3D puppet and the principals of how best to animate, film and edit your own stop-frame puppet animated sequence.
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee: £179.00Senior fee: £143.00Concession: £109.00 -
Slow contemplative stitch
Course Date: Thu 28 Jan 2021
Location on this date: OnlineA short online course, focussing on slow contemplative stitching and how this can relax and focus the mind through the process of a practical, repetitive activity.
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee: £129.00Senior fee: £103.00Concession: £79.00 -
Photographing people
Course Date: Fri 29 Jan 2021
Location on this date: OnlineGain confidence in photographing people. Learn about different aspects of portraiture, from posing to informal portraits and approaching strangers. Put your skills to practice in weekly tasks, participate in group discussions and get feedback.
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee: £149.00Senior fee: £119.00Concession: £75.00
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