I love the soft background. It definitely makes the color POP. The others are right though...the very first thing I noticed was how the bottom was out of focus. It doesn't kill the picture, but it would be nice to see the entire thing, nice and crisp.
As for it being an "artful" image, that would be more true if it were taken at a different angle, but the fact that it is straight on, I would have to say it was intended to be a "plain image of a vase". By plain, i do not mean boring or dull, i just mean that it is what it is...a picture of a vase.
Nice shot regardless!