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. The art and cinema of 20th century Spain: from Picasso to Almodóvar
    Evening
    Course start date:  Wed 17 Jan 2024

    Location on this date:  Online

    Tutors:  Mark Stuart-Smith
    Explore the development of Spanish art from Picasso’s 1937 'Guernica' to the installations of Juan Muñoz in the 1980s and 1990s. We will focus on key episodes highlighting General Franco’s impact on Spanish art 1936-2000.



    This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.
    Full fee £179.00 Senior fee £179.00 Concession £116.00
  2. 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
  3. 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
  4. 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
  5. Art and revolution: in the long 18th century
    Course start date:  Wed 21 Feb 2024

    Location on this date:  Keeley Street

    Tutors:  Sarah Jaffray
    From the absolute monarch to the beheaded king, discover how artists contributed to the cultural revolutions of the ‘long 18th century’ (1630s-1800). We explore how shifts in artistic style and subject matter reflected dramatic social change. Through reading the philosophy of the age we uncover how this era’s complex notions of beauty and justice still impact art and society today.
    Full fee £199.00 Senior fee £159.00 Concession £129.00
    Rating:
    100% of 100
  6. 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
  7. Art in 15th-century Siena
    Course start date:  Wed 21 Feb 2024

    Location on this date:  Online

    Tutors:  Emma Rose Barber
    Explore the art, society and geography of 15th century Siena, the picturesque Tuscan republic. Expand your knowledge of the Italian Renaissance beyond the borders of Florence by studying one of its worthy artistic, political and intellectual rivals.



    This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.
    Full fee £149.00 Senior fee £119.00 Concession £97.00
    Rating:
    100% of 100
  8. Arts of the golden age of the Ottoman Empire
    Course start date:  Wed 21 Feb 2024

    Location on this date:  Online

    Tutors:  Anita Chowdry
    Looking at how the vision of the Ottoman Sultans was crafted from diverse sources during a period of maximum growth, this course will focus on the architecture, arts and crafts of the early Ottoman Empire.



    This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.
    Full fee £119.00 Senior fee £95.00 Concession £77.00
  9. Ways into advanced art history: historiography
    Evening
    Course start date:  Wed 21 Feb 2024

    Location on this date:  Keeley Street

    Tutors:  Sarah Jaffray
    Develop a greater understanding of art history and how to analyse the cultural meaning of an artwork by going in-depth with the ideas of prominent art historians. This course looks at the history of art history – the history of interpretation.
    Full fee £149.00 Senior fee £149.00 Concession £97.00
  10. Full fee £99.00 Senior fee £99.00 Concession £64.00
  11. A stroll through British art: 1500-1850
    Course start date:  Wed 6 Mar 2024

    Location on this date:  Off Site

    Tutors:  Elizabeth Eyres
    On this informal gallery-based course you will explore and discuss the history and characteristics of British art from the 16th century to the mid-19th century. The course will take place offsite at both the National Gallery and Tate Britain.
    Full fee £139.00 Senior fee £111.00 Concession £90.00
  12. Art and melancholy: from the Enlightenment to the Victorian age
    Course start date:  Wed 17 Apr 2024

    Location on this date:  Keeley Street

    Tutors:  Emma Rose Barber
    Study the art of the period from c.1750-1880 considering Romanticism and the Pre-Raphaelites. We look at ‘romantic’ landscape, the modern moral subject and the depiction of women. Explore the art of women artists who struggled to survive as artists in the tightly controlled world of the art academy where the woman was encouraged to be muse and model rather than creator and thinker.
    Full fee £199.00 Senior fee £159.00 Concession £129.00
    Rating:
    70% of 100
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