The meal after the tea ceremony began as a "simple seasonal vegetarian meal served after the chanoyu or tea ceremony. Today, it is considered an art form that observes the harmony between food and nature, and takes the diner on an odyssey of flavors, textures and colors. A traditional kaiseki meal consists of a set sequence of courses based on preparation techniques. Pickled, raw, grilled and fried foods can all be included, in a certain order. Dishes focus on seasonal ingredients, and kaiseki chefs give zealous attention to presentation. Like the acts of a play, each dish is a component that strikes high and low chords yet harmonizes to create the whole" (Furiya, 2000). How the food appears within the serving ware is just as important as the tastes of the food itself, and the harmony of the flavors of the meal are reflected in the harmony and balance of colors on the vessel. Unlike the woodblock, the images upon the vessel are not dramatic, although the vessel is crafted in an innovative fashion, in terms of its use of kiln technique and introduction of unexpected colors. The striking nature of the color reflects its function as a wine vessel, one of the stronger flavors of the kaiseki meal. The heavier, brighter flavors of the wine are intended as a balance to the flavors of Japanese rice wine, known as saki. Thus, within the woodblock composition there is balance, and the apparent ease with which the mountain withstands the terrible typhoon parallels the ease with which the woodblock artist creates, with great difficulty, the deceptively simple raised etching that creates a print. The sacredness of the mountain is affirmed paradoxically by its smallness and durability, not its great size, as the great wave passes as the weather calms, but not...

The wine vessel's functionality of service, like the function of a meal, does not mean that both the meal and the colors of the wine are lacking in sacred significance. Although the vessel is only one component of a larger service and palate of colors and flavors, hence its more monochromatic simplicity and lack of complete balance as is evident in the woodcut, it also reflects the idea that artistic form and sacred function should be united in Japanese art, and that the difficulty of artistic creation should not call attention to itself. The bright colors of the wine server add intensity and life to the sacred meal, just like the wine within.
Works Cited

Ewer for Use in Tea Ceremony -- Momoyama period (1568-1615)." Asian Art:

Highlights. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. http://www.metmuseum.org/Works_of_Art/viewOne.asp?dep=6&viewmode=0&item=1988%2E156a%2C+b[Accessed 11 Apr 2007]

Furiya, Linda. "Kaiseki." The San Francisco Chronicle. 17 May 2000. http://www.kyo-ya-restaurant.com/kaiseki.htm.[Accessed 11 Apr 2007]

The Great Wave at Kanagawa (from a Series of Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji)."

Asian Art: Highlights. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. http://www.metmuseum.org/Works_of_Art/viewOne.asp?dep=6&viewmode=0&item=JP1847[Accessed 11 Apr 2007]

Hiroshi, Yoshida. Japanese Wood-block Printing. Tokyo & Osaka: The Sanseido Co.,

Ltd., 1939. Complete e-text available at http://woodblock.com/encyclopedia/entries/011_07/repeat_frame.html. Accessed 11 Apr 2007]

Witcomb, Christopher. "Mountains and the Sacred." Sacred Places. Sweet Briar College. http://witcombe.sbc.edu/sacredplaces/mountains.html. Accessed 11 Apr 2007]