Choosing the right course can feel overwhelming, but with a little guidance, you’ll be able to select a course that fits your artistic goals. At the London Art College, we offer a wide range of online art courses suitable for every skill level. Whether you’re starting as a hobbyist or aiming to develop professionally, here’s how you can decide which course is right for you.
1. Define Your Artistic Goals
Start by reflecting on your goals:
- Explore a New Hobby: If you’re looking to try something new and creative, our Beginners’ Drawing, Beginners’ Painting, or Drawing and Paintingcourses are perfect for starting out. These courses are designed to give you the tools and confidence to express your creativity.
- Enhance Your Skills: If you already have some experience and want to deepen your skills, consider courses like Drawing with Pens, Coloured Pencils, Pastels, or Cartooning for drawing, and Watercolours, Oils, Landscape Painting, or Botanical Painting for painting. These courses allow you to specialize and refine your technique.
- Illustration and Digital Art: For those interested in illustration, we offer three key courses:Illustration, Illustrating Children’s Books, and Chibi Character Development. These can be done using either traditional or digital media. If you’re looking to move into digital art, our Digital Illustration course is designed to help practicing artists transition from traditional to digital media, offering new tools and techniques.
- Build a Portfolio: For those aiming to develop a portfolio, the Drawing and Painting Diploma or Illustrating Children’s Books will help you create a body of work that showcases your skills, whether for personal or professional development.
- Art Appreciation and History: We also offer two History of Art courses that focus on art appreciation and include written coursework. These courses are perfect for students interested in exploring the history and theory behind art.
- Kids’ Art Courses: We offer Drawing for Children, two courses designed specifically for 7-10-year-olds to help them develop foundational art skills in a fun, engaging way.
2. Choose Your Preferred Medium
Art is all about finding the right medium for you. Here’s a breakdown of available options:
- Drawing: If you want to focus on drawing, consider courses such as Drawing with Pens, Coloured Pencils, Pastels, or Cartooning. These courses cover a range of techniques to help you create dynamic, expressive artwork.
- Painting: If you’re drawn to painting, we have options for Watercolours, Oils, Landscape Painting, and Botanical Painting. Each of these courses allows you to explore different painting techniques and subject matters.
- Illustration: Whether you prefer working traditionally or digitally, the courses in Illustration, Illustrating Children’s Books, and Chibi Character Development are designed to help you focus on the art of storytelling through images.
- Digital Media: If you want to focus on digital media, the Digital Illustration course is the best choice. It’s designed to help you make the transition from traditional methods to digital tools, teaching everything from digital painting techniques to using illustration software.
3. Consider Your Skill Level
Choose a course that matches your current skill level:
- Beginners: If you’re just starting out, ourBeginners’ Drawing, Beginners’ Painting, or Colour Awareness courses are perfect for developing basic skills and confidence. You’ll learn fundamental techniques that will help you in any art form.
- Intermediate Students: If you have a foundation and want to take your skills to the next level, consider courses like Drawing with Pens, Portrait Drawing, or Still Life. These courses are perfect for artists who want to refine their technique and expand their artistic range.
- Advanced Students: While our Drawing and Painting and Illustrating Children’s Books courses aren’t considered advanced, they are excellent for developing personal style and focusing on specific areas. Advanced students may also consider the Landscape or the more specialized courses like Pet Portraits.
4. Time Commitment
How much time can you dedicate to your studies? Here’s an overview of the time commitment for different courses:
- Short-Term Courses: If you’re looking for a short-term commitment, courses like Beginners’ Drawing, Beginners’ Painting, or Colour Awarenessare designed to be flexible and can be completed in a shorter time frame.
- Certificate Courses: These courses, such as Drawing with Pens, Portrait Drawing, or Still Life , generally take around 6 to 9 months to complete, providing you with a thorough understanding of the subject.
- Diploma Courses: If you’re ready for a more intensive learning experience, our Drawing and Painting Diploma or Botanical Coloured Pencils takes about 12 months to complete and offers in-depth instruction in your chosen area.
5. Explore Our Students’ Galleries
If you’re struggling to decide, we recommend visiting our students’ galleries. These galleries showcase real coursework submitted by our students, giving you an idea of what you’ll be asked to do in each course. It’s a great way to see the type of work you can create and to get a sense of the course content.
6. Seek Guidance
Still unsure? We’re here to help! Feel free to reach out to our team of course advisors at admin@londonartcollege.co.uk, and we can assist you in finding the course that best suits your needs and artistic goals.
Ready to Begin? Explore our full course
If you would like to receive a roundup of all of our blog posts once a week to keep you inspired in your inbox, why not sign up to our newsletter. You can access our sign up at the top of our page. If you are a London Art College student and you would like your artwork featured here, drop us a line at any time.
