Explore Culture, History & Humanities Courses
Explore our extraordinary range of History, Culture and Writing courses and lectures. We offer both introductory and specialist in-depth courses to suit all levels of interest and experience, from ‘How to read a film’ and World literature, to Creative non-fiction writing courses and American history and Politics courses.
Our tutors are experts in their fields and experienced educators; many have published, teach in universities or share their expertise in the media. Tutors share their knowledge and passion through presentations, readings, interactive discussion and exercises, analysis, and other activities.
Many students return to take more courses, telling us they enjoy being part of our City Lit Learning community.
Our popular courses often sell out quickly, so we invite you to browse and book your place now.
- The City of London: the Square MileCourse start date: Wed 9 Oct 2024 (and 1 other date)
Location on this date: Off Site
Tutors: Hazel BakerExplore the City’s development from Roman and medieval times through to the Tudors and Stuarts. This course will consist of 8 guided walks starting with Roman London. Tutor Guide: Hazel Baker.Full fee £199.00 Senior fee £159.00 Concession £129.00 - Art history tasterCourse start date: Mon 14 Oct 2024 (and 10 other dates)
Location on this date: Online
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 - Indigenous Australian art: an introductionCourse start date: Wed 16 Oct 2024
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Arjmand AzizIndigenous Australian art has, in recent years, been increasingly exhibited and discussed in Britain. Yet little is known about the history and development of this art movement and the oeuvres of the artists responsible for its creation. This introductory course will provide a history of how Indigenous Australian artists have changed and challenged the course of national and international art fields in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries.Full fee £79.00 Senior fee £63.00 Concession £51.00 - Looking inside paintingsCourse start date: Wed 16 Oct 2024
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Caroline RaeDiscover the secrets of the Old Masters and learn how they created their wonderful effects in this introductory course on painters and painting. We will consider the physical history and scientific examination of artworks in relation to aspects including forgeries, hidden paintings and conservation/ restoration.
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee £169.00 Senior fee £169.00 Concession £110.00 - Lunchtime lecture: Cezanne – from aspiring Impressionist to Post-Impressionist revolutionaryCourse start date: Wed 23 Oct 2024
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Julia MusgraveExplore 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 Senior fee £10.00 Concession £7.00 - Ways into creative writing: intensiveCourse start date: Tue 29 Oct 2024 (and 10 other dates)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Claire CollisonNot sure whether creative writing is for you? Give it a try on one of these fun and supportive short courses covering the basics of fiction and poetry. Increase your confidence and produce work through guided exercises and discussion.Full fee £149.00 Senior fee £149.00 Concession £75.00 - Ways into creative writing: a gentle paceCourse start date: Tue 29 Oct 2024 (and 3 other dates)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Claire CollisonAre you brand new to creative writing? Do you want to build your confidence in a supportive environment alongside other beginners? This gentle short-course guides students taking their first steps on the path to becoming a creative writer.Full fee £149.00 Senior fee £149.00 Concession £75.00 - Writing romanceCourse start date: Wed 30 Oct 2024 (and 1 other date)
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Eleanor PennyIt is a truth universally acknowledged that a writer in possession of a single pen can compose an unforgettable romance novel. This interactive course will guide students through the plotting of modern romance stories.
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 £149.00 Concession £75.00 - Mystery religionsCourse start date: Wed 30 Oct 2024
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Ann JeffersMystery religions were very popular in the ancient world and were organised as voluntary associations. Their popularity is attested in writings and in material culture of the Greco-Roman world. They offered intense religious experiences outside the official, civic religions. The participants were initiated into the mysteries: whilst there is considerable variety in form and content, a belief in a form of salvation was a common denominator of many of these mystery religions. The question of the relationship between the mystery cults and Christianity will also be broached.
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information. - London's smaller art collectionsCourse start date: Wed 30 Oct 2024 (and 2 other dates)
Location on this date: Off Site
Tutors: Julie BarlowDiscover some of London’s fascinating smaller art collections and hidden art treasures on this gallery-based art history course.Full fee £199.00 Senior fee £159.00 Concession £129.00 - Philosophy reading group: Kierkegaard's Fear and TremblingCourse start date: Wed 30 Oct 2024
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Karl WhiteFear and Trembling is a moving, challenging and influential work of philosophy: short but powerful. This course will offer an introduction to the work of Kierkegaard, explanation of some of the book’s knottier passages and group discussion.
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee £99.00 Senior fee £99.00 Concession £64.00 - Ethiopia: Guerrilla Insurgency and Italian Colonization, 1936-1941Course start date: Wed 30 Oct 2024
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Sunday Abraham OgunodeThis course is a historical reconstruction of Ethiopia’s guerrilla insurgency, its actors and their motivation, peculiarity, and/or commonness of tactics, as well as its impact and challenges during the 1935-1941 Italian invasion/occupation of Ethiopia. Tutor: Dr Sunday Oyewole.Full fee £129.00 Senior fee £103.00 Concession £84.00 - Colour in medieval artCourse start date: Wed 6 Nov 2024
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Andreas PetzoldColour is an all pervasive and fundamental aspect of medieval art, but one that is largely neglected in art historical studies.This course looks at some of the main themes relating to colour such as symbolism, materials, theory and key developments.
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee £129.00 Senior fee £103.00 Concession £84.00 - Art & memory: culture and politics in modern and contemporary artCourse start date: Wed 6 Nov 2024
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Mark Stuart-SmithHow have artists since 1960 engaged with the recent history and memory of political conflict? What role have artists had in remembering a difficult or traumatic past? What are the connections between memory and national identity in their work?Full fee £169.00 Senior fee £169.00 Concession £110.00 - Full fee £199.00 Senior fee £159.00 Concession £129.00
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