Explore History, Culture & Writing
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.
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- Friday lates: the art of the frame
Course start date: Fri 31 Mar 2023Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Julia MusgraveEvery picture tells a story, but what about the frame around it? Find out how picture frames can tell us more about the artworks they surround.
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 - Art history tasterCourse start date: Mon 27 Mar 2023 (and 2 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 - Lunchtime lecture: Botticelli's nature - vernal roses and frothing seasCourse start date: Mon 24 Apr 2023
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Sarah JaffrayExplore the nature and environment within and beyond Botticelli's most iconic paintings, La Primavera and The Birth of Venus. Learn how closely the artist studied nature and what it can teach about the changing climate we live in 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 £8.00 Concession £7.00 - Friday lates: Lubaina Himid – longing and belongingCourse start date: Fri 28 Apr 2023
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Chantal CondronThis Friday evening art history course spotlights the work of artist Lubaina Himid, one of Britain's most thought provoking artists.
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 - Friday lates: the body as image and material in 20th century artCourse start date: Fri 28 Apr 2023
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Irina ChkhaidzeExplore the representation of body and body-related practices by prominent modern and contemporary artists of the twentieth century.
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 - Writing inspiration jamCourse start date: Sun 30 Apr 2023
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Sue HealyThis fun, inspiring day workshop explores the many sources of inspiration available to writers in their everyday lives.
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 - Henry James: The Portrait of a LadyCourse start date: Wed 10 May 2023
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Sophie OxenhamThis short online literature course will explore Henry James’s novel ‘A Portrait of a Lady’ (1881). We will explore James’s narrative methods and concerns, and also engage with contextual and critical material to inform our reading.
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee £49.00 Senior fee £39.00 Concession £32.00 - Keats and EternityCourse start date: Sun 21 May 2023
Location on this date: Off Site
Tutors: Laurie SmithIn the house where many of them were written, we will explore why Keats’s poems are regarded as exceptionally beautiful. How did he achieve this? We will see that it wasn’t luck or simply inspiration, but the result of choices which reflect important aspects of Keats’ personality. Includes ‘Ode to a Nightingale’, Ode to a Grecian Urn’ and ‘To Autumn’.Full fee £49.00 Senior fee £39.00 Concession £32.00 - Lunchtime lecture: drawing on nature - early modern women, textiles and plantsCourse start date: Mon 22 May 2023
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Sarah JaffrayDiscover the extraordinary connection of botanical drawing and textile design by exploring the work of some of early modern Europe's most successful women artists: Maria Sibylla Merian, Isabella Parasole and Giovanna Garzoni.
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: 'the future is now', an introduction to video artCourse start date: Fri 9 Jun 2023
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Irina ChkhaidzeExplore the early history of video art, its rise as a medium and its significance as a contemporary art practice. We focus on the influential video works from the 1960s-1980s.
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 - Religious values and the future of healthcare in the UKCourse start date: Sat 10 Jun 2023
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Andrew GreyExplore how religious and moral concepts like dignity, autonomy and compassion are going to be increasingly important, and sometimes in conflict, as healthcare evolves to meet our future needs.Full fee £39.00 Senior fee £31.00 Concession £25.00 - Friday late: Agnes Martin - pioneer, painter, iconCourse start date: Fri 16 Jun 2023
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Henry MartinThis course examines the unconventional life and artworks of Agnes Martin (1912–2004), regarded as one of the great artists of the Twentieth Century. Topics covered include Abstract Expressionism, Minimalism, LGBTQ artists, and the role of the biography in Art History.
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 - Lunchtime lecture: Los Angeles landscapes - the art of Ed RuschaCourse start date: Mon 19 Jun 2023
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Sarah JaffrayDiscover the light and life of Los Angeles through the work of Ed Ruscha. We consider how Ruscha's works on Los Angeles provide us with ways to explore our relationship to nature, the natural and unnatural.
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 - Art Deco London walkCourse start date: Thu 22 Jun 2023
Location on this date: Off Site
Tutors: Diane BursteinTravel back to the 1930s to explore the Art Deco style that influenced a variety of designs, from radios and cutlery to places related to travel, entertainment and commerce. In addition to looking at the architecture of the period, your guide will tell stories of life in London from the time these buildings were being erected.
Meeting outside St James’s Park tube station (Broadway exit) and finishing at the coach station. Meeting outside St James’s Park tube station (Broadway exit) and finishing at the coach station.Full fee £19.00 Senior fee £15.00 Concession £10.00 - Aesop's fables: an introductionCourse start date: Tue 18 Jul 2023
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Maria ContosAesop’s fables have been used through history to clarify important issues within society. Investigate their perseverance through history and why they continue to be relevant today.Full fee £49.00 Senior fee £39.00 Concession £32.00
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