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.

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Courses available both in-person and online

We offer a range of long and short courses allowing you to choose between online and in-person learning. 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. See our guide to online learning for more information about accessing our live online courses.

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  1. Lunchtime lecture: Vincent van Gogh - London, Paris, and Japan
    Course start date:  Wed 27 Sep 2023

    Location on this date:  Online

    Tutors:  Julia Musgrave
    Follow Vincent van Gogh from London to Paris in the late 19th century and discover the artistic influences and friendships that informed his art.



    This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.
    Full fee £10.00 Senior fee £10.00 Concession £7.00
  2. Lunchtime lecture: The Other Story – introducing the BLK Art Group
    Course start date:  Wed 4 Oct 2023

    Location on this date:  Online

    Tutors:  Sarah Jaffray
    Get to know the ground-breaking art and ideas of the BLK Art Group, the early 1980s art and activist community whose work still shapes our conversations about art and culture in the UK today.



    This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.
    Full fee £10.00 Senior fee £10.00 Concession £7.00
  3. Full fee £10.00 Senior fee £10.00 Concession £10.00
    Rating:
    98% of 100
  4. Lunchtime lecture: Judith Leyster & Frans Hals – a Haarlem rivalry
    Course start date:  Wed 1 Nov 2023

    Location on this date:  Online

    Tutors:  Sarah Jaffray
    Explore the art world of the 17th century Netherlands through the artistic ‘rivalry’ of Judith Leyster and Frans Hals in the city of Haarlem.



    This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.
    Full fee £10.00 Senior fee £10.00 Concession £7.00
  5. Still life in the history of art: opulence and fragility
    Course start date:  Wed 8 Nov 2023

    Location on this date:  Online

    Tutors:  Elizabeth Eyres
    Still-life paintings usually represent ordinary things, often small and arranged on an indoor surface, without human presence. Long regarded in western art as the lowliest subject or “genre”, one that only required technical skill rather than imagination, still lifes are now considered some of the most charming and best loved paintings and can contain intriguing meanings that repay close study.



    This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.
    Full fee £149.00
  6. Renaissance art: making, locating and viewing
    Course start date:  Wed 8 Nov 2023

    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 £179.00 Senior fee £143.00 Concession £116.00
  7. Lunchtime lecture: angels in art
    Course start date:  Wed 13 Dec 2023

    Location on this date:  Online

    Tutors:  Emma Rose Barber
    Angels have always made their mark – wings and all. And this course will explore painted and carved angels in western art in all their ways and fashions, from the archangels to Christmas angels to those just flying in to say hello.



    This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.
    Full fee £10.00 Senior fee £10.00 Concession £7.00
  8. Lunchtime lecture: Cezanne - from aspiring Impressionist to Post-Impressionist revolutionary
    Course start date:  Wed 10 Jan 2024

    Location on this date:  Online

    Tutors:  Julia Musgrave
    Explore the development of Cezanne revolutionary approach to painting, his techniques and motifs and some of the many artists whose work he influenced.



    This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.
    Full fee £10.00
  9. Lunchtime lecture: Philip Guston's restless world
    Course start date:  Wed 24 Jan 2024

    Location on this date:  Online

    Tutors:  Sarah Jaffray
    Discover the social political context reflected in the art of Philip Guston and how, even over 40 years after his death, his work is relevant in our world today.



    This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.
    Full fee £10.00 Senior fee £10.00 Concession £7.00
  10. The foreigners that invented British art
    Course start date:  Wed 7 Feb 2024

    Location on this date:  Keeley Street

    Tutors:  Leslie Primo
    Trace the importance of foreigners to the British art scene from the Tudor period to the Baroque. How did artists like Holbein, Dobson, van Somer and van Dyck influence the British School?
    Full fee £169.00 Senior fee £135.00 Concession £110.00
  11. Lunchtime lecture: Ellen Gallagher, drawing the archive
    Course start date:  Wed 7 Feb 2024

    Location on this date:  Online

    Tutors:  Sarah Jaffray
    Explore the artistic practice of contemporary artist Ellen Gallagher and how the research of history is at the core of the art she creates. This lecture will focus on her drawing practice, emphasising works in the collection of the British Museum and shown recently in London at the Tate, Hayward Gallery and Royal Academy.



    This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.
    Full fee £10.00 Senior fee £10.00 Concession £7.00
  12. Homes, houses and art in Britain 1900-1960
    Course start date:  Wed 21 Feb 2024

    Location on this date:  Online

    Tutors:  Emma Rose Barber
    Knock on the door of artists’ houses and studios from 1900-1960 to experience exciting and visually dazzling spaces created over the course of their careers. At a time when artists were beginning to forge their own brave new visual worlds, this course considers what the homes might tell us about the artists and how they wanted their homes to be seen.



    This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.
    Full fee £149.00
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