Beginners courses in art & design
City Lit is the perfect place to try your hand at art & design in a fun and welcoming environment with courses taught by practicing artists.
Whether you want to explore fine art, contemporary crafts or digital art, we have the course for you. Our range of introductory art courses are open to everyone.
Located in the heart of central London, our dedicated studios for jewellery, ceramics, drawing, painting, printmaking, digital arts and photography will provide all the facilities you need to start your next creative adventure.
- Drawing 1
Course start date: Sun 14 Jun 2026 (and 10 other dates)Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Luke Jones, Andrea VoiseyAn introduction to drawing from observation through a carefully structured approach in a studio environment. Suitable for beginners.Full fee £449.00 Senior fee £359.00 Concession £292.00 - Introduction to graphic design Course start date: Thu 18 Jun 2026 (and 4 other dates)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: John Smyth, Pam WilliamsGraphic Design is everywhere; from books, magazines and newspapers to packaging design and digital media.
In this introductory course, learn how to use image, type and layout to visually communicate ideas in a variety of different ways.
Full fee £389.00 Senior fee £311.00 Concession £253.00 - Cyanotype printmaking in a day Course start date: Sun 21 Jun 2026 (and 9 other dates)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Adam HogarthCyanotype is a photographic printing process which produces a beautiful deep blue print from a variety of artwork, including drawings, photographs, physical objects or combinations of all of these. All levels welcome.Full fee £139.00 Senior fee £139.00 Concession £139.00 - Textiles: embroidery and embellishment Course start date: Sun 21 Jun 2026 (and 1 other date)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Renata MinoldoAn introduction to the world of embroidery and embellishment. Explore a concept of your choice through experimentation with embroidery and embellishment techniques using hand and machine methods.Full fee £299.00 Senior fee £239.00 Concession £194.00 - Painting from plants and flowers Course start date: Mon 22 Jun 2026 (and 4 other dates)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Anne-Marie FosterExplore a variety of creative approaches for painting flowers from observation. Discover the rich history of this genre while taking inspiration from artists who use flowers as their subject matter.Full fee £299.00 Senior fee £239.00 Concession £194.00 - Drawing into watercolour painting Course start date: Tue 23 Jun 2026 (and 3 other dates)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Lindsay PickettExplore the relationship between the two disciplines of drawing and watercolour painting and the opportunities when their distinct qualities are combined.Full fee £239.00 Senior fee £191.00 Concession £155.00 - Textiles: illustrative embroidery Course start date: Wed 24 Jun 2026 (and 1 other date)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Rosie JamesDevelop your embroidery skills in both hand and machine stitching. Create a range of samples, learn how to transfer designs to cloth, explore design ideas, experiment with fabrics and threads.
Full fee £269.00 Senior fee £215.00 Concession £175.00 - Painting 1 Course start date: Thu 25 Jun 2026 (and 7 other dates)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Amanda BrackenPainting 1 offers an introduction to the basic principles and skills associated with painting. Focus on differing approaches to observational and imaginative work, whilst learning how to organise a palette, mix colours and create different textures.Full fee £449.00 Senior fee £359.00 Concession £292.00 - Drawing: ink and wash techniques Course start date: Mon 29 Jun 2026 (and 6 other dates)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Rolina Elsje BlokThe immediacy and versatility of ink and wash is perfect for those sketching on location, for designers and for students interested in watercolour techniques. Take the opportunity to explore the basic techniques of this exciting process.Full fee £209.00 Senior fee £167.00 Concession £136.00 - Life drawing for beginners Course start date: Tue 30 Jun 2026 (and 2 other dates)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Luke JonesThis short course is a great introduction to drawing directly from the nude model, both male and female. Using simple excercises, you will explore different ways to represent the human form in drawing, with encouraging, helpful guidance from an experienced tutor. Suitable for absolute beginners.Full fee £219.00 Senior fee £175.00 Concession £142.00 - Drawing: colour pastel techniques Course start date: Thu 2 Jul 2026 (and 4 other dates)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Ro SylvesterExplore the versatility and rich colours of this beautiful drawing and painting medium. Through practical exercises, discover its potential to create a variety of surface effects and its suitability for sketching and colour work.Full fee £209.00 Senior fee £167.00 Concession £136.00 - Art and creative thinking with Rod Judkins Course start date: Sun 5 Jul 2026 (and 3 other dates)
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Rod JudkinsArt is fundamentally about communicating ideas. If the idea is strong, the work of art is memorable.
This exciting, one day workshop, led by Rod Judkins (artist, tutor and author of ‘The art of Creative thinking’ and ‘Ideas are your only currency’) will explore methods to create ideas and concepts and combine them with the process of making.Full fee £89.00 Senior fee £89.00 Concession £89.00 - Painting for beginners Course start date: Fri 10 Jul 2026 (and 6 other dates)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Mario Lautier VellaThrough simple exercises you will explore basic methods of painting in acrylic from still-life, mixing and matching the colours and textures observed. Learn how to set up your workspace and begin to enjoy painting in a studio environment, using a variety of brushes and tools.
Full fee £159.00 Senior fee £127.00 Concession £103.00 - Create a short film in a weekend Course start date: Sat 11 Jul 2026 (and 3 other dates)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Lyndon IvesLearn how to script, storyboard, shoot, edit and export a short film in this fun and fast paced introduction to film making.Full fee £209.00 Senior fee £209.00 Concession £209.00 - Try it out: calligraphy Course start date: Sat 18 Jul 2026 (and 1 other date)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Sharon ShawFancy having a go at this beautiful art form? This short weekend course will introduce you to two different calligraphy pens: a broad edge nib used for scripts such as gothic and italic and a flexible nib used for modern calligraphy and Copperplate.
Full fee £179.00 Senior fee £179.00 Concession £179.00
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