The Camille Patha show at Tacoma Art Museum is stupendous. Frankly, having seen her paintings only on a computer screen, I had not expected anything so great. On my computer they were too slick, too intense, and overwhelming in a not-good way; but the real deal is breathtaking.

The show is "A Punch of Color: Fifty Years of Painting by Camille Patha." She is a Seattle artist who has been recognized nationally as a proto-feminist painter lauded for, first, surrealistic paintings loaded with feminist and sexual symbolism, and more lately for large abstractions with hot, vibrant color.

Read Alec Clayton's full review of "A Punch of Color: Fifty Years of Painting by Camille Patha" in the Music & Culture section.

"A PUNCH OF COLOR: FIFTY YEARS OF PAINTING BY CAMILLE PATHA," 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. through May 25, Tacoma Art Museum, 1701 Pacific Ave., Tacoma, $8-$10, 253.272.4258