What We Keep

What We Keep explores the quiet space that exists after release.

Letting go is often understood as an act of removal, as though healing requires us to erase every memory, emotion, or trace of what came before. Yet some things remain. Not because we are unable to move forward, but because they become part of who we are.

The experiences we carry, the lessons we uncover, and the truths revealed through reflection continue to shape us long after the moment has passed. Rather than defining us by the past, they become the foundation from which we understand ourselves more honestly.

This work reflects that process of acceptance. It considers the difference between what no longer serves us and what deserves to be carried forward. Within its layered surface are suggestions of memory, erosion, and reconstruction echoes of what has been released alongside the fragments that remain.

What We Keep invites viewers to consider that healing is not measured by what is left behind, but by what remains once everything unnecessary has fallen away.

Dimensions – 150cm (w) x 100cm (h) x 5cm (d)
Framed dimensions – 154cm (w) x 104cm (h) x 6cm (d)
Framed in white, ready to hang
Signed certificate of authenticity

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Thomas Orrin is an Adelaide-based artist whose work is a deeply personal expression of creativity, emotion and lived experience.

Naturally shy and reserved, Tom found it difficult to express himself through words from an early age. Art became a place where he could communicate freely; a way of expressing experiences, feelings and ideas that were often difficult to articulate.

His creative journey began with doodling in schoolbooks before developing into an early fascination with graffiti during his teenage years. After stepping away from art for several years while pursuing a career in house painting, Tom began a deeper process of understanding himself and how he experiences the world. Through continued counselling and personal reflection, he has come to recognise that he experiences and feels the world differently to others. This ongoing process of self-understanding has allowed him to return to art with a renewed perspective, passion and sense of purpose.

While these physical influences remain central to his work, his practice has continued to evolve. What began with a fascination for the surfaces around him has gradually opened into a deeper exploration of memory, emotion and lived experience. His recent work increasingly moves between recognition and ambiguity.

Each painting develops through a process of building, removing and reworking layers, with the final work often emerging through intuition rather than a predetermined outcome. This allows the paintings to retain traces of their history while leaving space for the viewer to bring their own experiences and interpretations to the work.

Based in South Australia, Tom works from his studio in the Adelaide Hills.