For many, the word “quilt” conjures an image of a warm bed adorned with a neatly patterned bedspread sewn by a long-departed great-grandmother.

But for fiber artists, a quilt is a hand-constructed canvas, meant not for beds but for gallery walls, and featuring designs ranging from the tame — Japanese origami-inspired patterns, to the bizarre — works adorned with items such as tea bags, dried meat and cellophane.

Opening last weekend in downtown’s Seattle Exhibition Center, the Coming of Age exhibit features the work of several UW professors and fiber arts students.

Celebrating the 20th anniversary of the Contemporary Quilt Art Association, the free exhibit, which runs until March 26, consists of 46 “pieces” — quilts meant for display rather than a cold winter night.

“Some people have a difficult time getting their head around the fact that quilts can be art that can be hung on a wall and not put on a bed,” said Katy Gollahon, a UW pathology lab manager and quilter.

“Once a person has gone [to a quilt exhibition] their eyes are sort of opened,” said Bonny Brewer, a UW genome sciences professor who has had her quilts displayed in Arizona and New Jersey. “They say, ‘Wow, I had no idea,’ and that tends to get repeat customers. The types of people who would be interested in quilts would be people interested in fibers of all kinds and other arts like basketry, embroidery, or weaving.”

The art quilt is required to share several traits with its more traditional relative. To be considered for exhibition, a quilt must consist of three layers: a back, a middle –— which usually gives the quilt its substance — and a top, the part that generally acts as the canvas. All three layers, when stitched together, result in a finished quilt that is ready for display.

Sharon Rowley, one of 25 students currently enrolled in the UW’s 15-year-old fiber arts extension program, said a finished quilt can sell for anywhere from $300 to $4,500 depending on the size, material and reputation of the artist.

Layne Goldsmith, chair of the UW Fiber Arts Department and a jurist who helped select the work at the current downtown exhibition, said the world of art-quilt exhibition can be quite competitive.

“Because quilting is such a well-documented historical field, quilts submitted should be of the artist’s own design, their own unique voice,” she said. “We look for work that is innovative or extending certain traditions. Art should bring something … that is not necessarily expected.”

What that innovation consists of, however, is up in the air.

“I wish I knew what the judges look for,” said Gollahon, who spends up to six months on each quilt. “I’ve made quilts based on images from the Hubble telescope and I’ve also had a series inspired by Japanese watercolors and painting. I like strong geographic designs which harken back to traditional design.”

Brewer said in her experience, juries usually look for specific elements.

“Juries usually look for visual impact, construction and color,” she said. “But when you’re looking at art it is really hard to judge. Really, it’s like asking, ‘Is a Picasso better than a Vermeer?’”

For Goldsmith, however, there are no winners or losers.

“I really admire the specialization and work ethic,” she said. “I appreciate the range of skill and talent and interest of the members of the group, which is diverse. As a panel of jurors together we learn processes of self, interest and enlightenment.”

Reach reporter Keegan Hamilton at news@thedaily.washington.edu.