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.
- Painting for beginners
Course start date: Mon 8 Sep 2025 (and 5 other dates)Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Amanda BrackenThrough 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 - Drawing for beginners Course start date: Tue 8 Jul 2025 (and 13 other dates)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Andrea VoiseyExplore traditional and less traditional methods of drawing simple objects. Using structured activities, you will be introduced to key concepts such as line, tone, composition and mark making. Ideal if you have little or no drawing experience; a great way to learn the basics or prepare for longer courses.Full fee £139.00 Senior fee £139.00 Concession £139.00 - Introduction to using the sewing machine Course start date: Tue 9 Dec 2025 (and 1 other date)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Renata MinoldoIdeal for beginners, you will learn how to use a sewing machine, its different components, how to troubleshoot and look after your machine. You will also learn different basic sewing techniques to start your journey into the world of sewing.Full fee £129.00 Senior fee £129.00 Concession £129.00 - Draw, paint, print Course start date: Wed 17 Sep 2025 (and 3 other dates)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Mary WintourOn this experimental course, you will draw, paint and print in often unfamiliar ways in order to catch the unexpected. Through experimentation and reflection, you will collate a personal collection of work.Full fee £389.00 Senior fee £311.00 Concession £253.00 - Bookbinding: gold tooling on leather Course start date: Thu 18 Sep 2025
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Tracey RowledgeThis course is a great introduction to gold-tooling and the creative use of the medium. Learn how to gold tool on leather with various hand tools, using BS Glaire and gold leaf. All levels welcome. - Try it out: garden design Course start date: Fri 19 Sep 2025
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Alison WorsterGet a taste of how you can improve your outside spaces. In this online workshop you will learn how to assess an outside space and complete a short exercise in garden design planning. A great preparation for our range of beginners garden design courses. - Drawing: charcoal techniques Course start date: Tue 23 Sep 2025
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Luke JonesExplore the creative possibilities that this fragile medium affords. Learn and develop the components of drawing with charcoal’s subtle yet dynamic lines. This is a course for beginners. No experience is necessary.Full fee £209.00 Senior fee £167.00 Concession £136.00 - Textiles: experimental hand stitch Course start date: Tue 20 May 2025 (and 1 other date)
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Amarjeet NandhraA contemporary approach to hand stitching and embroidery exploring a variety of traditional stitches and techniques.
Create experimental and expressive samples using traditional and non-traditional materials.Full fee £229.00 Senior fee £183.00 Concession £149.00 - Introduction to photography Course start date: Wed 12 Nov 2025 (and 2 other dates)
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Dominic HarrisDiscover the basics of photography to improve your photographs and impress your friends. Learn about shutter speed, aperture, photo composition, light and taking pictures in different environments. This course is perfect for complete beginners or for learning new skills. Please take this course before enrolling on our intermediate courses.Full fee £209.00 Senior fee £167.00 Concession £136.00 - Introduction to prop making for film, TV, theatre and display Course start date: Mon 28 Jul 2025 (and 1 other date)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Ro SylvesterLearn a range of sculptural techniques that are used in the ever expanding film, TV and theatre prop making industry. Explore a range of sculpting and casting methods and fabricating techniques, and experiment with materials.Full fee £479.00 Senior fee £383.00 Concession £311.00
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