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Art history

Art History courses online and in London

Looking to build your confidence in discussing and interpreting art? Or are you interested in taking your established knowledge of art in new directions? Then come and join City Lit’s Art History learning community!

Our exceptional range of courses, both introductory and in-depth, are designed for all learning levels. Our programme approaches art history from a variety of perspectives including social and cultural context, art theory and philosophy, curation and collecting, general art appreciation and so much more.

Choosing the right class for you

Our courses are open to all. Our students come from all backgrounds and learning experiences, from the absolute beginner to those refining their knowledge and understanding. We aim to give you the confidence to engage meaningfully with art, whatever level you are working from. Our students use our courses for personal fulfilment as well as professional and educational development. Many of our students go on to advanced degree and certificate programmes and many are able to use their knowledge in art making and gallery work.

Learn from expert tutors

At City Lit we are proud of the expertise of our tutors who are all professional art historians working actively in museums, galleries, research and writing, universities and auction houses. As experts in the field, they are able to provide you with the support and guidance you need to develop your art historical knowledge. As teachers they provide student-focused education, helping students achieve their art historical goals, both the personal and the professional.

For the latest news, courses, events and competitions, stay in touch with us on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram.

Courses available both in-person and online

Join us in the heart of London for in-person classes. Our modern campus in Covent Garden is easy to reach and buzzing with creativity. With modern purpose-built facilities and state-of-the-art equipment, it’s the perfect space to support your learning journey. Explore our facilities >

Prefer learning online? Our live online courses bring expert teaching to you, wherever you are.

Whether you choose to study in-person or online, all our courses are live, interactive, and taught by expert tutors. Wherever and however you want to learn, we’re here for you.

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.

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Items 1-15 of 28

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  1. Renaissance art at the National Gallery
    Course start date:  Wed 14 May 2025 (and 1 other date)

    Location on this date:  Off Site

    Tutors:  Emma Rose Barber
    This course explores the Making, the Locating and the Viewing of Renaissance paintings in the collection of the National Gallery. This course takes place at the National Gallery.
    Full fee £129.00 Senior fee £103.00 Concession £84.00
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  2. Art and society in the early modern Netherlands
    Evening
    Course start date:  Wed 4 Jun 2025

    Location on this date:  Online

    Tutors:  Thomas Balfe
    This course focuses on Flemish and Dutch (Netherlandish) art of the late sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. The course will examine well-known artists such as Peter Paul Rubens, Anthony van Dyck, Rembrandt and Vermeer, as well as the role of artworks and visual images in the formation of religious, class, gender and national identities, in early science, and in cultures of collecting.
    Full fee £169.00 Senior fee £169.00 Concession £110.00
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  3. Art revolutions from 1905-1925
    Evening
    Course start date:  Wed 4 Jun 2025

    Location on this date:  Online

    Tutors:  Christopher Collier
    Cubism, Futurism and Constructivism are pivotal movements in the history of modern art – encapsulating all the promise and peril of the 20th century’s devastating birth, and even helping rewrite perceptions of space and time.
    Full fee £79.00 Senior fee £63.00 Concession £51.00
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  4. Looking at contemporary art
    Course start date:  Wed 4 Jun 2025

    Location on this date:  Off Site

    Tutors:  Francesca Cavallo

    Explore and discuss contemporary art on show in London. Each week we’ll visit 1-2 commercial galleries or a public gallery and examine specific exhibitions of contemporary art across a range of media including painting, works on paper, photography, new media and sculpture.

    Full fee £159.00 Senior fee £127.00 Concession £103.00
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  5. Sanctuary in the city – public art by refugees and immigrants
    Course start date:  Wed 18 Jun 2025

    Location on this date:  Off Site

    Tutors:  Marilyn Greene

    Come on a walking tour of public art through the City of London created by Refugees and Immigrants. We will explore artworks such as the 17th century carvings on the Monument and a Victorian plaques relocated on to the post Modern Number One Poultry by economic immigrants to the country as well as looking at mainly works by 20th century artists from refugee backgrounds who were either commissioned to make art works for site specific places or their works have been bought or moved to their locations.

    Full fee £19.00 Senior fee £15.00 Concession £12.00
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  6. Full fee £29.00 Senior fee £23.00 Concession £19.00
    Rating:
    90% of 100
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  7. Full fee £119.00 Senior fee £119.00 Concession £77.00
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  8. Van Eyck and the Pre-Raphaelites
    Course start date:  Wed 25 Jun 2025

    Location on this date:  Keeley Street

    Tutors:  Emma Rose Barber
    Explore the work of Van Eyck in relation to Holman Hunt and the Pre-Raphaelites more generally; consider how this 15th century painter influenced artists some 300 years later.
    Full fee £19.00 Senior fee £15.00 Concession £12.00
    Rating:
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  9. Full fee £10.00 Senior fee £10.00 Concession £10.00
    Rating:
    99% of 100
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  10. Art in England transformed: the court of Charles I
    Course start date:  Wed 2 Jul 2025

    Location on this date:  Online

    The art collection of King Charles I (1600-1649) was magnificent and hugely influential. Explore the artists, craftsmen, agents and connoisseurs who shaped one of the most important European art collections and learn about how objects and artists from across Europe made their way to London.

    Full fee £19.00 Senior fee £15.00 Concession £12.00
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  11. Lunchtime lecture: Louise Bourgeois, the abject and the erotic
    Course start date:  Wed 9 Jul 2025

    Location on this date:  Online

    Tutors:  Sarah Jaffray
    An introduction to the art of Louise Bourgeois, its feminism, both erotic and abject. We explore Bourgeois as a sculptor, printmaker and performance artist, looking at how she was influenced by psychology and biography.
    Full fee £10.00 Senior fee £10.00 Concession £7.00
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  12. The art of Chinese gardens: nature and philosophy
    Course start date:  Wed 16 Jul 2025

    Location on this date:  Online

    In early modern China, gardens were more than places of retreat, they functioned as major social, cultural and economic sites. In our time of ecological crisis, gardens play a crucial role in mitigating pollution. This course will examine how the intersections of art, architecture, philosophy and sensory experience of Chinese gardens show continuity and change from the early modern period to the present day. 

    Full fee £19.00 Senior fee £15.00 Concession £12.00
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  13. National Gallery
    Course start date:  Wed 24 Sep 2025 (and 1 other date)

    Location on this date:  Off Site

    Tutors:  Leslie Primo
    Discuss a differently themed group of paintings each week in front of the pictures. An opportunity to understand our national collection in greater depth.
    Full fee £299.00 Senior fee £239.00 Concession £194.00
    Rating:
    100% of 100
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  14. The history of Western art in 100 paintings
    Course start date:  Wed 24 Sep 2025

    Location on this date:  Off Site

    Tutors:  Julia Musgrave
    A chronological introduction to Western art from c.1250 to the present day, taught by looking at artworks in London’s galleries, and related materials.
    Full fee £679.00 Senior fee £543.00 Concession £441.00
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  15. Islamic art in the medieval world
    Course start date:  Wed 24 Sep 2025

    Location on this date:  Keeley Street

    Tutors:  Anita Chowdry
    A course examining the formation and development of Islamic Art and Design; looking at the role of ideology and patronage, and the key influences that went into its development and evolution.
    Full fee £309.00 Senior fee £247.00 Concession £201.00
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