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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- Art history taster
Course start date: Mon 27 Mar 2023 (and 3 other dates)Location on this date: Online (other locations are available)
Tutors: Sarah JaffrayCurious about art history? Join us for this taster session where we explore different ways into visual art and its histories, from the ancient to the contemporary.
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 £10.00 - Art and revolution: in the long 18th centuryCourse start date: Wed 1 Mar 2023
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Sarah JaffrayFrom 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 £189.00 Senior fee £151.00 Concession £123.00 - Looking at contemporary artCourse start date: Fri 3 Mar 2023
Location on this date: Off Site
Tutors: Chantal CondronExplore 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 £109.00 Senior fee £87.00 Concession £71.00 - The influence of Japan on Western art in the 19th centuryCourse start date: Fri 3 Mar 2023
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Sarah JaffrayExplore how 19th century European artists from the Impressionists to Art Nouveau transformed their artistic language with the study Japanese art, form and subject.Full fee £139.00 Senior fee £111.00 Concession £90.00 - Representing nature in early modern EuropeCourse start date: Fri 3 Mar 2023
Location on this date: Online
Explore the links between the visual image and ideas of nature in early modernity (c.1500-1750). At this time, tools like the microscope were visualising nature in new ways, changes were afoot in how humans related to animals, and the environments of Asia and the Americas were becoming more familiar to Europeans. We will focus on how artists and skilled artisans engaged with these subjects.
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee £109.00 Senior fee £87.00 Concession £71.00 - Friday lates: the art of zinesCourse start date: Fri 3 Mar 2023
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Christopher CollierUnderground passions and radical imagery have defined so-called fanzines for over 80 years. From the earliest examples to today, we explore their content, technique and the relation of DIY culture to wider artistic practices.
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee £19.00 Senior fee £19.00 Concession £12.00 - Focus on: David HockneyCourse start date: Sun 5 Mar 2023
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Julie BarlowIn 2011 David Hockney was voted most influential British artist of all time in a poll of over 1000 artists. Explore how Hockney’s career as painter, photographer and writer has evolved over six decades.
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee £59.00 Senior fee £47.00 Concession £38.00 - Cutting it fine: collage in modern & contemporary artCourse start date: Sun 5 Mar 2023
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Chantal CondronImmerse yourself in an exploration of the history of collage going as far back as ancient China to international contemporary art today. This engaging study day will enhance your knowledge of the roots of this fascinating media, and illustrate how collage techniques have been pivotal to major modern and contemporary art movements, from Cubism, Dada and Surrealism to photomontage and digital art.Full fee £59.00 Senior fee £47.00 Concession £38.00 - Animals in Renaissance artCourse start date: Mon 6 Mar 2023
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Lydia GoodsonBeasts are everywhere in the art of the Renaissance. Discover why they are there and how artists created the painted and sculpted menageries of both real and imaginary creatures that populate Renaissance art.
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee £69.00 Senior fee £55.00 Concession £45.00 - A stroll through British art: 1500-1850Course start date: Wed 8 Mar 2023
Location on this date: Off Site
Tutors: Elizabeth EyresOn 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 £169.00 Senior fee £135.00 Concession £110.00 - Lunchtime lecture: rethinking Mary CassattCourse start date: Thu 9 Mar 2023
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Sarah JaffrayJoin us for an exploration of the art of Mary Cassatt: feminist, independent, painter of women in the world.
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 £8.00 Concession £7.00 - Friday lates: Paula Rego – fairy tales and forbidden thingsCourse start date: Fri 10 Mar 2023
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Chantal CondronDiscover the work of one of Britain’s best loved artists, whose paintings of vivid interior and private drama draw on her early years growing up in Portugal under the repressive Catholic dictatorship of General Salazar.
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee £19.00 Senior fee £19.00 Concession £12.00 - Purchasing power: patronage and art buying in the Italian RenaissanceCourse start date: Sun 12 Mar 2023
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Lydia GoodsonDiscover the back-story of 'how art works come to be' by learning about the patronage and production of artworks in Renaissance Italy.
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee £59.00 Senior fee £47.00 Concession £38.00 - Friday lates: new media art in China - over the Great FirewallCourse start date: Fri 17 Mar 2023
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Meitao QuFrom creation to distribution, the explosion of digital technologies has transformed artmaking in a myriad of ways. In this session, we will journey across the Great Firewall to explore new media art in China.
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee £19.00 Senior fee £19.00 Concession £19.00 - Focus on: VermeerCourse start date: Wed 22 Mar 2023
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Leslie PrimoMaster of stillness and light, author of only 35, maybe 36, known works, Vermeer’s art continues to fascinate. Discover his life and works in the context of the Dutch Golden Age.
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee £69.00 Senior fee £55.00 Concession £45.00
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