When is a Bowl More than a Bowl?

Here I am inspired by flowers, once again. Spring is in the air and I love having blooms inside  as well as out . In my last blog , I shared how I made petals out of clay,  as a decorative touch on my porcelain bowl.
I had these beautiful orchid stems, plus a few other flowers I wanted to display. What to put them in?
I had an idea to make sort of an oriental arrangement, so that each individual bloom would be visible. To me this meant something rather low. 
 I know of the ancient form of flower arranging called Ikebana, which  I  used  as inspiration. They include: embracing the asymmetrical form; use of empty space as part of the composition; and harmony among the materials, container, and setting.  
I was perplexed on which container to use. 
As I looked around, I spied  this luscious, purple  bowl I had thrown. The color was perfect to reflect the orchids. I chose three pieces of  quartz from my garden to hold things in place, and bring balance. Often I use it for eating  my salad,  but doesn't  function  follow whatever form we choose?
So there was my answer. My bowl was more than just a bowl.