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Short courses in Fine Art

Explore new techniques, patterns and ways of mark making and painting on our wide range of courses.

You'll be based in the Nottingham School of Art and Design on the city campus where you'll find bright drawing and painting studios and workshop spaces to develop your ideas and create new and exciting work.

Discover our courses

Beginners, improvers and professionals are all welcome to attend a short course where you'll meet other adult learners who share your interests to achieve personal and professional goals.

Courses run during evenings and weekends as well as intensive, week long courses during the summer.

If you'd like to discuss which course is right for you or have additional questions we'd love to help! You can email us or give us a call on +44 (0)115 848 2813.

Abstract Painting

Discover abstract painting through gesture, mark-making, and emotional colour. Create dynamic compositions and finish with your own expressive oil painting on canvas!

Acrylics Now

This course is ideal for those people new to acrylics and those with some experience. It will cover the basic tenets of acrylics; the materiality of the paint, the support (board, canvas, paper or other) and the tools required to create different effects.

Advanced Botanical Drawing and Illustration

Are you ready to elevate your botanical drawing skills? This advanced course is perfect for those who want to deepen their practice and explore complex techniques. Building on foundational skills, you'll refine your ability to capture intricate plant details with greater accuracy and artistic expression.

Art School Experience

Is immersing yourself in the art school way of life something you’ve dreamed about? If so, join this intensive course and start developing your personal approach to creating art.

Botanical Drawing and Illustration for Beginners

Do you have an interest in the natural world either as a result of hobbies (gardening, horticulture or painting) or through employment (landscape designers, conservationists and botanists)? This course will develop your knowledge and skills in the field of botanical art and illustration.

Contemporary Life Drawing

On this two day Contemporary Life Drawing course you’ll learn key strategies to help you draw the figure and begin experimenting with new approaches.

Drawing for Beginners

This course is an energetic exploration of the ways in which people use drawing and mark making to analyse and respond to physical (and metaphysical) spaces. It’s aimed at anyone who is new to drawing or people with experience looking for a challenge.

Drawing Now

The course is aimed at the adventurous beginner and those with more experience as it will build upon the basics of drawing using line, edge, form and tone.

Drawing with Scissors: Contemporary Collage

This course is designed to expand your existing skills in drawing, painting or illustration through an introduction to the art of collage. It will take you on a developmental journey from drawing with paper, through simple collage printmaking methods, and assemblage.

Exploring Colour

Are you feeling unsure of where to start with colour? Are you stuck in a palette rut? Tackle colour conundrums head-on and become masters of your own paint palette with this one-day course.

Illustration: Storytelling through Drawing

This course is ideal if you’re interested in visual storytelling, whether you’re familiar with drawing and are looking to try a fresh approach, or if you’re an adventurous beginner looking for a new challenge.

Installation Art: Objects in Space

Immerse yourself in the realm of contemporary art on this encouraging and gently challenging course. Tailored for anyone intrigued by the world of creating immersive visual experiences, it invites you to explore the fundamentals of installation and assemblage art.

Introduction to Sculpture

This course is your key to a world where your imagination knows no bounds, and every sculpture is a testament to your unique artistic voice. Dive into a journey of self-expression, exploration, and endless creative possibilities—your sculptor's journey begins here.

Landscape Painting

Discover the art of landscape painting! Learn composition, colour techniques, and expressive mark-making with outdoor and studio sessions. Perfect for enhancing your skills!

Oil Painting

From beginners eager to explore this traditional medium, to experienced painters seeking to push the boundaries of their practice; whatever your experience you’ll learn the principles of oil painting and how to create different effects using the ‘alla prima’ method of painting wet paint into wet paint.

Painting Now

This course is the ideal opportunity to explore traditional and modern approaches to painting in watercolour, gouache, acrylic and ink. You’ll have lots of opportunities to experiment with a range of techniques using each of these mediums. The course is aimed at the adventurous beginner and those with more experience as it will build on the basics of painting: the qualities of paint, how to use paint in an effective way and how to plan and create original compositions in your own style.

Portraiture Painting

Master vibrant oil painting techniques, create lifelike skin tones, and capture your subject’s essence with expressive brushwork in just three days.

Summer Painting Studio

Explore oil, abstract, portrait, and landscape painting in a dynamic summer studio. Develop your style, experiment with techniques, and create stunning artworks over 3 weeks.

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