Naomi Brotherton doesn’t act her age. But at 87, that’s a good thing. She helped found the Artisans Studio Gallery in Far North Dallas nearly 30 years ago, and she has been teaching watercolor painting there ever since. “Teaching keeps me active, and teaching keeps me connected with dear friends because all my students end up becoming my dear friends,” she says. “And I keep on teaching because I am trying to share what I have learned with other people.” And after nearly seven decades of painting, Brotherton has a lot of knowledge to impart. She began painting as a young teenager, even though her rural Texas high school didn’t offer art classes. Instead, Brotherton taught herself to draw and paint through trial and error. “My parents bought me paper and crayons, and I just went from there.” She went on to earn her bachelor’s degree in art from Baylor University. During the 1950s, she moved to New York City to study at the highly renowned Art Student’s League and The Art Career School. Today, watercolors remain Brotherton’s main medium because she says she likes “the overall result, the challenge of working with them and the easy cleanup.” Brotherton’s specialties include flowers, landscapes and night scenes, which are tricky to pull off with watercolors. For information about Brotherton’s work, call 972.488.8182 or visit artisansstudio.com.